The Ogun state Police Command has arrested a 36-year-old man, identified as Kingsley Essien, for allegedly trafficking his wife to Mali for prostitution and selling her 2-year-old son at N600,000.
The suspect was nabbed after his wife, Bright Essien, made a report at the Agbara divisional headquarters that in October 2021, her husband told her he had secured a job for her in Bamako Mali and being her husband, she believed him and travelled to Mali, unknown to her that he had sold her to a human trafficking cartel.
According to a statement released by the Spokesperson of the state police command, DSP Abimbola Oyeyemi,
“She explained further that being her husband, she didn’t suspect any foul play until she got to Mali only to discover that she has been sold to human trafficker cartel headed by a woman at the rate of One million four hundred thousand naira. While in Mali, she was forced into prostitution, but later found her way to Nigeria embassy in Bamako where she was assisted back to Nigeria.
On getting to Nigeria, she discovered that her two years old son in care of her husband is nowhere to be found.
Upon the report, the DPO Agbara division, SP Abiodun Salau detailed his detectives to go after the suspect, and he was eventually arrested.”
Upon interrogation, the suspect admitted that he indeed trafficked his wife to Mali, and subsequently sold her son to somebody at the rate of six hundred thousand naira.
Oyeyemi said the commissioner of police, CP Lanre Bankole, has ordered that the case be transferred to the anti human trafficking and child labour unit of the state criminal investigation and intelligence department for discreet investigation.
The CP also ordered that the buyer of the little boy be tracked down and arrested in order to recover the child.
