Police Arrest Couple for Child Trafficking, Rescue 3 Stolen Children

Detectives attached to Mowe Division of the Ogun State Police Command have uncovered a couple involved in child trafficking and rescue three suspected stollen children, The successful operation was led by the Divisional Police Officer, CSP AFENIFORO FOLAKE, and the suspects were identified as MATHEW UGOCHUKWU, and his wife, OLUWARANKAMI KEHINDE UGOCHUKWU. The Police Public Relations Officer of the Ogun State Command, DSP OLUSEYI BABASEYI, said the couple were arrested following a complaint lodged at the Mowe Police Division by a resident of Omo Onile, about the theft of her four-month-old baby. DSP BABASEYI said the complainant alleged that while she was receiving treatment at a clinic in Mowe on Saturday, May 16, 2026, OLUWARANKAMI KEHINDE UGOCHUKWU visited the facility under the guise of checking on her condition, before deceitfully taking her child away. The PPRO said upon receipt of the complaint, the DPO assigned detectives to strategic locations with a view to track down the fleeing suspects, following which the couple were traced to their hideout at Kekere Ekun area of Mowe on Monday, May 18, 2026 at about 7:55pm. The police spokesman said the stolen child was rescued at the location, alongside two other children found in the possession of the couple, while the suspects were promptly arrested and taken into custody. He said preliminary investigation revealed that one of the children found with the suspects had earlier been declared missing in a 2024 child stealing case, in which the child was taken from a hairdressing salon using the same deceptive method of pretending to offer assistance. DSP OLUSEYI BABASEYI said the biological parents of two of the rescued children have been contacted and they have positively identified their wards, while the case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran, for discreet investigation. He said the Commissioner of Police, Ogun State Command, CP BODE OJAJUNI, commends the swift response, professionalism, and commitment of the officers and men of Mowe Division, “whose proactive efforts led to the arrest of the suspects and rescue of the children.” “The CP reiterated the Command’s resolve to sustain the fight against child trafficking, abduction, and other violent crimes across the State” the PPRO assured.