By Oluwatoyin Adegoke
Operatives of the Ogun State Police Command have arrested a couple over alleged child theft and also rescued three children in Mowe area of the state.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Ogun State Command, Mr Oluseyi Babaseyi, said the suspects, Oluwarankami Kehinde Ugochukwu and her husband, Ugochukwu Mathew, were arrested by detectives attached to Mowe Police Division.
Mr Babaseyi explained that the arrest followed a complaint by a resident of Omo Onile area of Mowe who reported that her four-month-old baby was taken away while she was receiving treatment at a clinic.
He said the female suspect allegedly visited the victim under the guise of checking on her condition and later disappeared with the baby after offering to assist with childcare.
The police spokesman noted that detectives immediately launched an intelligence-led operation, mounted surveillance at motor parks and other strategic locations and subsequently traced the suspects to their hideout at Kekere Ekun area of Mowe where the stolen baby was rescued alongside two other children found in their possession.
He disclosed that preliminary investigation revealed that one of the rescued children had earlier been declared missing in a child stealing case reported in 2024 where the victim was allegedly taken from a hairdressing salon through a similar deceptive method.
According to him, the biological parents of two of the victims had been identified and reunited with their children, while the case had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran, for further investigation.
