Six suspects have been arrested and two pregnant women and four children rescued after the Ogun State Police Command raided an alleged ’baby factory’ in the Mowe area of Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area.
The operation also uncovered a potentially deeper trafficking case after investigators traced another victim to a hospital in the area, where she had reportedly delivered a baby boy but could not account for the newborn’s whereabouts.
The police said the raid was conducted at about 8am on Monday, August 24, following sustained intelligence on activities allegedly taking place at a facility on Toluwalase Street, Abaren Village, via Gbarinmole, a suburb of Mowe.
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Deputy Police Public Relations Officer for the command, Oluborode Opeyemi, disclosed the arrests and rescue in a statement issued in Abeokuta.
He described the operation as a significant breakthrough in the command’s efforts against human trafficking and child exploitation, saying operatives had dismantled what preliminary findings suggested was an illegal baby-producing and trafficking network.
According to Opeyemi, the raid yielded the rescue of two heavily pregnant women and four children, comprising two boys and two girls.
“Preliminary investigation revealed that human trafficking and illegal adoption activities had been systematically occurring at the facility over time,” he said.
The discovery at the hospital has added a fresh dimension to the investigation.
Police said follow-up intelligence led operatives to a hospital within the Mowe axis, where another woman had reportedly given birth to a baby boy on August 20. The mother was receiving medical treatment, but the whereabouts of the newborn could not be established.
The attending nurse was subsequently arrested as investigators sought to determine what happened to the infant and whether the hospital was connected to the alleged trafficking operation.
The police said the case would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran, Abeokuta, for further investigation.
The inquiry is expected to establish the extent of the alleged syndicate’s activities, identify other persons who may have participated in the operation, trace the missing newborn, and determine the appropriate charges against those found culpable.
The incident highlights the different layers of alleged child trafficking networks. While the Mowe raid focused on a facility where pregnant women and children were found, the police investigation has now extended to a medical establishment because of the unexplained disappearance of a newborn.
Ogun State Police Commissioner, Bode Ojajuni, reaffirmed the command’s commitment to combating human trafficking, child trading, and other violent crimes across the state.
The command said it would provide further information as the investigation progresses.
For now, the six suspects are in police custody while investigators work to establish whether the rescued women and children were victims of a single organised operation and, crucially, where the missing baby is.
