In a distressing incident that left many questioning the depths of desperation, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), FCT Command, apprehended a man attempting to sell his 8-year-old son for a shocking N20 million in Abuja.
Commandant Mr. Olusola Odumosu paraded the suspects at the NSCDC FCT Command’s headquarters, revealing that 42-year-old China Telpesa Solomon Tali was tracked and apprehended on January 10, 2024, by the intelligence unit of the command.
Tali had allegedly enlisted the help of Pius Aondoakaa, also arrested, to find a buyer for his 8-year-old son, the fourth of his six children.
Commandant Odumosu explained that the intelligence personnel received a tip-off, leading to immediate surveillance.
“The FCT Commands’ ardent and astute intelligence personnel in their proactive engagements in January 2024, intercepted a father who conspired with another to trade an eight-year-old boy who he claimed to be his child for the sum of N20 million in the FCT.
“Following a tip-off, the suspects were immediately placed under surveillance. One of the suspects Pius Aondoakaa in a quest for a higher bid rejected the sum of N12 Million and was looking for N20 Million Naira for a ‘He-goat’ meaning a boy
“He also offered a ‘she-goat’ (i.e. girl child) for N15 Million Naira. Pius claimed to have a boy child for sale and that the father of the boy wanted to use the proceeds of the sale to take care of his other children,” he stated.
The NSCDC posed as a potential buyer, luring Tali to Abuja on January 10, 2024. The suspects agreed on terms to sell the child for N20 million, leading to their apprehension.
In an interview with journalists, Tali cited hardship as the reason behind his disturbing act, claiming that the son, who was unaware, was to be sold to provide for his other children.
Both suspects, hailing from Logo Local Government Area of Benue State, were handed over to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for further investigation and prosecution.
In a separate incident, NSCDC FCT Command also exposed a 23-year-old man, Yakubu Mati, caught vandalizing armoured cable along the Idu Metro Railway Lines, armed with a hoe, a saw blade, and a lighter.
Investigations concluded, and Mati is set to face swift court proceedings.
