The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has dismissed allegations circulating on social media that its operatives “abducted” children during a rescue operation in Asaba, Delta State. The Agency insisted the action was lawful and carried out under its statutory mandate.
Speaking at a media briefing on Friday in Abuja, the Director-General of NAPTIP, Binta L. Adamu Bello (OON), said the operation, which took place in June 2025, was part of efforts to trace missing children from Kano State. She explained that the rescue of eight children from the Happy Home Orphanage in Asaba was based on intelligence and collaboration with civil society partners.
“The operation was not an abduction, as wrongly portrayed by some commentators. It was a lawful rescue exercise conducted in line with the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015, which empowers NAPTIP to investigate, rescue, and prosecute cases of trafficking, abduction, and related offences,” Bello stated.
She revealed that the case began in December 2022 when the Protection Against Abduction and Missing Children (PATAMOC), led by Comrade Ismail Ibrahim Mohammed, petitioned NAPTIP over missing children in Kano State. Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of suspects in Gombe, who confessed to selling children to different buyers, including the proprietor of the orphanage in Delta State.
According to the DG, one of the children, identified as Aisha Buhari by her mother, was traced to the Asaba orphanage. This prompted NAPTIP operatives, supported by the Kano State chairman of parents of missing children, to carry out the rescue mission.
For procedural compliance, Bello disclosed that a formal request for police support was made to the Delta State Commissioner of Police before the operation. Armed officers from the B’ Division Police Station in Asaba accompanied the team to the orphanage on June 15, 2025.
“At the orphanage, over 70 children were profiled, and eight were positively identified as among those reported missing. No arrests were made because the proprietor was absent and only his wife was present at the time. We left contact details for further engagement, but unfortunately, he has since refused to cooperate and has resorted to blackmail,” she explained.
The NAPTIP boss added that the rescued children were initially sheltered by the Kano State Ministry of Women Affairs but were later moved to a secure NAPTIP facility due to conflicting claims of parentage from individuals in Kano and Delta. She assured that the Agency would only release the children after thorough investigations, including DNA testing, are concluded.
“We call on all claimants to make themselves available for investigation instead of resorting to social media campaigns. NAPTIP is a law-abiding agency committed to due process, and we will not spare anyone found culpable in this case,” Bello warned.
She further urged the Delta State Government to investigate the activities of the Happy Home Orphanage, describing the case as symptomatic of wider irregularities in some private care facilities.
While commiserating with parents whose children remain missing, Bello reiterated NAPTIP’s commitment to expediting investigations, prosecuting offenders, and reuniting rescued children with their lawful families.