Police Arrest Two Child Traffickers in Akwa Ibom Over Selling of Children, Three at Large
The Akwa Ibom State Police Command, Uyo has arrested a man, Mr. Sunday Monday Udoh from Ekpene Obo, Esit Eket, and a woman, Mrs. Patience Kingsley Godwin Koffi Etanam from Idung Udo, Eket Local Government Areas. The suspects were arrested for allegedly selling two children, male ten and the female four years old respectively.
A police crack team headed by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ifiiok Joseph of the police headquarters, Uyo effected their arrests on a tip-off by a community member who was monitoring their shady activity.
Our reporters gathered that Mr. Sunday Monday Udoh had taken two of his grandchildren (names withheld) to a spiritual healing home run by a certain Prophet Ikon in Ekpene Obo, Esit Eket for exorcism. But Mr. Udoh who was not satisfied with the deliverance carried out on his grandchildren hinted that he was prepared to kill the children to avoid unnecessary encumbrance to his life since their parents were not alive. It was at this juncture that Prophet Ikon told him he had a link for the children to be sold out to those who needed them for adoption. It was at this juncture that a certain Kingsley Godwin Koffi Etenam from Idung was contracted as a link man to perfect the shady deal having been a kingpin in sales of children business. When he arrived, he took the two children alongside their grandfather, Mr. Sunday Monday Udoh to Abia State.
While in Aba, Abia State for the sales of the children, the police was hinted which led to the arrest Mr. Monday Udoh. Though Kingsley escaped the dragnet of the police, his wife, Patience didn’t.
Our report further learned that Mrs. Patience Kingsley Godwin Koffi Etenam operates a spiritual healing home and a traditional birth attendants centre where she recruited young girls whom she camped in her centre and invites men to put them in the family ways and as soon as they gave birth, the children were sold to ritual or human trafficking syndicates.
The police are still hunting for Kingsley Godwin Koffi Etenam, Prophet Ikon and one Christopher now at large.
Commenting on the sad news, the head of the Child’s Right and Rehabilitation Network (CRARN) Mr. Sam Itauma said children stigmatization as witches makes it easier for children to be carted away and sold out by human traffickers and ritual killers as they are often abandoned and rejected by their families.
He decried the alarming rate of fake traditional birth attendants (TBA) homes in the state and stated that such quasi and illegal operators should be fished out and brought to book