A couple, Mathew Ugochukwu and Oluwarankami Kehinde, have been arrested by the Ogun State Police Command, Southwest Nigeria, in the Mowe area for alleged child stealing.
The command’s spokesperson, Babaseyi Oluseyi, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday, adding that police operatives also rescued three children from the suspects.
According to the statement, the suspects are Oluwarankami Kehinde Ugochukwu and her husband, Mathew Ugochukwu.
Oluseyi said the arrest followed a complaint made at the Mowe Division on Sunday by a resident of Omo Onile, Mowe.
He said the complainant reported that while receiving treatment at a clinic on Saturday, one of the suspects visited her pretending to check on her condition.
The police spokesperson said the woman allegedly collected the complainant’s four-month-old baby under the pretence of helping to care for the child while the mother rested and later disappeared with the baby.
“Upon receipt of the report, detectives of the division were immediately mobilised. Motor parks and strategic locations within the area were placed under surveillance while intelligence-led operations were intensified.
“Acting on credible intelligence, detectives tracked the suspects to their hideout in the Kekere Ekun area of Mowe on 18/05/2026 at about 7:55 p.m., where the stolen child was rescued alongside two other children found in their possession,” the statement read.
The statement added that the couple were arrested and taken into custody.
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According to the police, preliminary investigations showed that one of the other children found with the suspects had earlier been declared missing in a 2024 child-stealing case.
The police said the child was allegedly taken from a hairdressing salon using the same method of pretending to offer help.
“The biological parents of two of the rescued children have been contacted and have positively identified their wards,” the statement added.
Oluseyi said the case had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran, Abeokuta, for further investigation.
Reacting to the arrest, the Commissioner of Police, Ogun State Command, Bode Ojajuni, commended officers of the Mowe Division for their swift response and professionalism.
According to the statement, the commissioner reaffirmed the command’s commitment to fighting child trafficking, abduction, and other violent crimes in the state.
He also urged residents to remain vigilant and report suspicious movements or criminal activities through the command’s emergency lines.
The development comes less than a week after the Abia State Police Command announced the arrest of three female suspects over alleged child stealing.
The command also said two children were rescued during an operation carried out in the Akwete Divisional Headquarters area of the state.
Source: Punch
