Adamawa State Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri reunited 14 abducted children with their families on Wednesday after rescuing them from Igbo traffickers in Anambra State.
During the official handover ceremony at Government House in Yola, Fintiri, represented by his deputy, Prof. Kaletapwa Farauta, described how the combined efforts of security agencies resulted in the children’s rescue and the arrest of the suspected kidnap kingpin, Ngozi Abdulwahab, a middle-aged woman of Igbo extraction.
The governor added that in July 2025, intelligence reports indicated a string of missing children, especially kids, prompting immediate action by security personnel from the police, the Department of State Services, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
“This notorious trafficker perfected the art of trafficking minors aged four to 9 years from various communities in Adamawa State to the South-East, where she sold the victims for paltry sums ranging from N800,000 to N1.7m per child,” Farauta said on behalf of the governor.
The suspect allegedly runs a tiny provision business in Jambutu ward, Yola North Local Government Area, luring naive children with snacks and toys.
Farauta condemned the crime as “monstrous and traumatic”, promising that those responsible will be brought to justice.
“We have ordered the immediate prosecution of the suspects under the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015, the Adamawa State Child Protection Law (2008), the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law, 2021, and the Penal Code of Adamawa State,” she declared.
She admonished parents against irresponsibility and asked them not to send children under the age of ten on errands or to school alone.
“I welcome you to a mixed feeling of sadness and joy. It is sad that Adamawa State has now appeared on the map of an unfortunate monster which has been ravaging the nation—the monster of child trafficking. This is an infamous story we used to hear from far away. Unfortunately, it has caught up with us,” the governor said.
She also delivered Fintiri’s message of zero tolerance for child trafficking:
“The message of His Excellency Rt Hon. Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri to human traffickers and their accomplices is clear: Adamawa State is the wrong place to come to. We shall flush them out, dismantle their networks, and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. Our citizens are our most cherished assets and must never be turned into commodities of trade.”
Each of the 14 families whose children were rescued received N100,000 in cash, as well as food and non-food items, to help them cope with their ordeal and start small businesses.
The deputy governor urged parents to be more alert and responsible when caring for their children, characterising them as “sacred blessings from God”.
“To parents across the state, I call on you to take parenting more seriously. Children are sacred blessings from God, and we must treat them with the responsibility they deserve,” she urged.
