A suspected operative of an interstate child trafficking syndicate has made a series of shocking confessions at the Oyo State Police Command headquarters, detailing how she sold two sets of her own biological children and snatched 19 other children across multiple states.
Adejoke Popoola, who was paraded before journalists in Eleyele, Ibadan, outlined a chilling criminal record extending back to October 2024. The suspect explained that her activities ranged from selling her own newborn and a set of twins to infiltrating families under the guise of an intending tenant or a faith healer.
“God blessed me with the gift of pregnancy. Anytime a man has sex with me twice, I get pregnant, and it is always difficult to abort. I have sold two sets of children, a newborn boy and twins as well, last year. I sold the twins to … clinic; she also resells them to her customers in Lagos. She has a baby industry. When the owner of the pregnancy rejects the pregnancy, that is when I sell. Sometimes I get N80,000 or N120,000 for each child I sell. The clinic in Ogeere gave me N300,000 for the twins,” Popoola stated.
Popoola, a mother of seven whose biological children range in age from 6 to 34, admitted that an associate at the Ogeere Market originally instructed her in the mechanics of abducting young infants.
“I steal babies. I will go to their place and say I want to rent a house. Then, if I do not see anyone, if I see their children, I will just steal their children,” she said.
How the Stolen Children Rescued Ibadan Operation Began
The suspect also targeted vulnerable families by posing as a spiritual practitioner, exploiting parents whose children suffered from speech or physical disabilities.
“Sometimes, I disguise myself as a spiritualist. Parents bring their disabled children to me because they cannot talk, sit, or walk. So, I will promise them that I can help them to heal, then I will go and pick another person’s child for them,” she confessed.
Her trajectory came to a halt following the abduction of a three-year-old boy, Ifakunle Ifagbenro, during an Egungun festival in Oyo Town. Popoola described how she offered to carry the child during the traditional event before absconding with him under cover of dusk.
“I went to an Egungun festival to steal a child, Ifakunle. I woke up early and asked a bike man to drive me to the place where they were holding the Egungun festival, so he drove me to the house. When I entered the house, they were praying, so I joined them and I even gave them money for the prayer. When the Egungun left, the boy told his mother that he did not want to stay at home and wanted to join the procession. So, I volunteered to help hold the boy. I joined them for the procession and, in the evening, I picked up the boy, laid him on my back and ran away with him,” Popoola recounted.
She confirmed that six of the 19 children she seized lost their lives during her period of operation, while 13 remained alive.
“About six children died from the 19 children I have kidnapped, but 13 are alive,” she added.
Uncovering the Interstate Child Stealing Network across Southern Nigeria
Addressing newsmen at Eleyele, Commissioner of Police Abimbola Olugbenga revealed that officers dismantled the interstate child-stealing network after following up on a formal petition submitted on July 29, 2026. This petition, coincidentally filed by Popoola herself—also known as Orente Alagbo—eventually pointed detectives directly to the disappearance of young Ifakunle.
Photographic evidence from the festival confirmed Popoola carrying the boy shortly before his disappearance on June 29. Detectives arrested her on August 4, triggering a chain of confessions that implicated her primary accomplice, Adekanbi Janet (alias Hosanna).
A subsequent raid on Janet’s residence in Mowe, Ogun State, led to the rescue of four children alongside two pregnant women kept in custody until delivery. Persistent field investigation ultimately resulted in locating Ifakunle near Gbagi, Ibadan, on August 20.
The police operation soon expanded to Delta State. On September 2, officers arrived in Agbor and recovered four additional missing children from buyers. Detectives arrested two suspects, Christopher Joy (48) and Rosemary Jesse (53), confirming the syndicate’s expansive commercial reach.
Fatal Exploitation and Ritual Links Discovered by Oyo State Police Command
The investigation also uncovered an alarming ritual dimension. According to police statements, when children died in captivity, syndicate members regularly sold their remains to herbalists and religious figures for ritual practices. Detectives subsequently took Muritala Fasasi, an Alfa, and Yakubu Azeez, an herbalist, into custody.
Police authorities confirmed six child fatalities, officially identifying the deceased victims as Musharaf Lawal Tajudeen (2), Greatness Adeagbo (5), Sainat Amoo (2), Taiwo Usman (2), Daniel Solomon Olayinka (7), and Miracle Olaniyi (4).
To date, police officers have secured 17 stolen children rescued in Ibadan operations and linked locations, bringing total arrests to seven. Commissioner Olugbenga has requested parents and guardians who lost children recently to report to the Oyo State Police Command headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan, to assist with identification and reunification efforts.
