Niger State Police Command says its intelligence department operatives arrested two suspected child traffickers and ritualists and rescued four children between the ages of 4 and 7 years in Suleja Local Council of the state on June 3, 2026, behind the old Nepa area.

In a statement yesterday, Spokesperson for the command, SP Wasiu Abiodun, named the suspects as Mrs Promise Chukwudi, 68, and Mrs Suzanna Onojekwo, 62, both of Suleja, stating that the children were found in the latter’s residence.

He explained that the suspects claimed that the children were released to them for adoption by their parents, all natives of Karim-Lamido in Gassol Local Council of Taraba State, between November 2025 and February 2026.

According to the police, the suspect said she previously ran an orphanage called Precious Promise Nursery, Primary and Orphanage Home in 2022, but resumed operation in November 2025.

She further claimed to be a licensed herbal medicine practitioner who provides local medicine for ailments.

Abiodun disclosed that during investigations, different parents emerged from Abuja, Nasarawa and Benue states to claim the children, contrary to the suspect’s claim, noting that in the course of searching her residence, a shrine, animal skulls, pieces of multi-coloured clothing and bird feathers, among other fetish items, were discovered.

The spokesperson added that the suspects have been transferred to the Police Headquarters in Minna for discreet investigation, and the children were handed over to the child rights agency for care, as the investigation to identify the parents continues. Also, the suspects have been charged in court for prosecution, he stated.