Badagry area
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A woman, identified as Grace Onome, has been arrested in Lagos for
allegedly selling her two-year-old child in the Badagry area of the
state.
PUNCH Metro reports that Onome was arrested on Saturday by the Badagry
Police Division after a tip-off. Four accomplices, who allegedly aided
the sale of the girl, were also arrested by the police.
It was learnt that the sold daughter, identified as Zainab, is yet to be found.
Onome, who worked as a commercial sex worker in the Mobil area of Badagry, allegedly sold Zainab
to another sex worker, identified only as Endurance.
A police source at the division said operatives were on the trail of Endurance in order to rescue Zainab. He said,
“It was on Saturday that Grace (Onome) and Endurance had the transaction. They are both commercial sex workers in the area.
Endurance gave Zainab’s mother N50,000, before taking the girl away. The
mother said she used the money to buy a few things for herself. The
fleeing buyer is of no fixed address. But the police are on her trail.”
A child rights’ worker, Ebenezer Omejalile, said a request had been made
to the police to have the case transferred to the Gender Unit, Lagos
State Police Command, Ikeja, for more investigation.
He said,
“Child rights’ workers in the Badagry area are monitoring the case. It
is being investigated by the surveillance section of the police
division.
“The woman is a commercial sex worker and she sold the girl to a fellow
commercial sex worker, who fled with the girl to a yet-to-be-ascertained
location to resell her.
“We want the matter to be transferred to the gender unit of the police in Ikeja, where proper investigation will be done.
“We are worried that the victim has yet to be rescued by the police. Our
contact persons in the Badagry area have been detailed to work with the
police, and they will follow up on that matter.”
A source told Punch that the accomplices arrested with Onome were released on bail on Saturday.
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, confirmed Onome’s arrest.
She added that efforts were ongoing to track the suspected buyer of the girl.
She said,
“The mother has been arrested and she confessed to be a commercial sex
worker. Effort is ongoing to track the fleeing suspected buyer and the
child.”