The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has rescued 34 children between the ages of eight and 14 from traffickers along Okene-Lokoja expressway.
The agency spokesman, Femi Babafemi, in a statement on Friday, said the children were rescued following the interception of two buses carrying them along the expressway by operatives in the early hours of Thursday, December 16, 2021.
Babafemi said the children were being trafficked from Ijebu Ode in Ogun State to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
The statement reads, “NDLEA operatives on patrol along Okene-Lokoja expressway in Kogi state have intercepted 34 children between the ages of 8 and 14 being trafficked from Ijebu Ode, Ogun state to Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.
“The minors packed in two commercial buses; Toyota Sienna and a 12- Seater Mazda with registration numbers Lagos LND124FV and Oyo BDJ-683YK respectively, were recovered in the early hours of Thursday 16th Dec from the human trafficking syndicate.
“The bus drivers confirmed that the kids were handed over to them by a woman at Ijebu Ode to be conveyed to Abuja, adding that on arrival in FCT, the woman is to call another bus driver who will convey the children to Riyom in Plateau State.
“It was further revealed that the children were initially trafficked from Plateau state to Ijebu Ode, where they were distributed to different households as domestic servants. Some of the children were discovered to have served for two years and their rewards sent to a woman’s agent in Jos.”
