By MOHAMMED BABA BUSU

The Niger State Command of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has rescued six victims of child trafficking, including twin babies, in a major breakthrough against human trafficking in the state.

Mr Emmanuel When, the State Commander of NAPTIP, disclosed this while reuniting some of the rescued victims with their parents at the agency’s office in Minna on Tuesday

Awhen said that the case of the recovered twins began when their mother reported that a female staff member of the Social Welfare Department in Bida took the babies a day after birth under the pretext that the government would assist in raising them.

He said Investigations revealed that the babies were sold through a nurse at the Federal Medical Centre, Bida, to individuals in Lagos State and Anambra.

According to him, the agency recovered the twins and reunited them with their biological mother on Dec. 18, 2025, in the presence of the Niger State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Hadiza Idris-Kuta.

The commander said that further investigations uncovered another related case involving the same suspects, who allegedly deceived a beggar in Bida by posing as government officials willing to support the upbringing and education of her children.

“In the process, four children were taken, two were kept by the suspects as domestic helpers, while the other two were sold through the same nurse and her associate to individuals in Abia and Anambra states,” he said.

Awhen added that the two children kept by the suspects were later returned to their parents during the investigation.

He said that seven suspects, including a staff member of the Bida Local Government Council’s Social Welfare Department, had been arrested in connection with the cases.

The NAPTIP commander appreciated the Niger Government, through the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, for its support and collaboration.

He commended the commissioner and the permanent secretary for their commitment to tackling human trafficking and protecting vulnerable children in the state.

Awhen also acknowledged the support of other security agencies, particularly the anti-human trafficking unit of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, for their cooperation in the rescue and investigation.

In her remarks, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Idris-Kuta, commended NAPTIP for its swift response in rescuing the victims and reuniting them with their families.

She described the incidents as disturbing, noting that the affected parents were vulnerable and had been deceived into releasing their children under false assurances of care and support.

Idris-Kuta warned that traffickers were increasingly exploiting poor and displaced families with deceptive promises.

She reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to supporting NAPTIP in strengthening the fight against human trafficking.

The commissioner called for intensified community sensitisation and improved surveillance, particularly in Bida and its environs, to ensure perpetrators were identified, arrested and prosecuted.

She noted that one of the affected families had relocated from Zamfara to Niger due to insecurity, making them more susceptible to exploitation.

Idris-Kuta stressed the need for stronger collaboration among government agencies, local authorities and community leaders to support vulnerable families and prevent trafficking.

Also speaking, Mallam Mu’azu Halilu, father of the children, expressed gratitude to NAPTIP and the state government for rescuing his children.

He pledged to take proper care of them and vowed never to allow such an incident to recur. (NAN)