The Ekiti State Police Command yesterday said it had arrested 17 suspected cattle rustlers and recovered 558 cattle from them across the state.

The command also disclosed the arrest of five suspects over the alleged operation of an illegal baby factory and child exploitation along Ise Road in Ikere Ekiti.

Speaking in Ado Ekiti, the Commissioner of Police, Joseph Eribo, said the arrests followed actionable intelligence received on January 21, 2026. He said operatives first apprehended Ibrahim Abubakar, described as a notorious cattle rustler and kidnap suspect.

“During investigation, Ibrahim Abubakar confessed that he is into cattle rustling business and equally mentioned different occasions in the past where he attacked cattle owners and made away with their cattle.

“A large number of rustled cattle numbering 255 were recovered from him. He will be further investigated and charged to court.” Eribo added that investigations revealed Abubakar had, over the years, rustled cattle in Ekiti, Kwara and Kogi states and had been on the wanted list of the three states.

The police said 16 other suspects were arrested the same day. Eribo said 303 cattle suspected to have been rustled were found in their possession at the point of arrest, adding that the suspects could not give a satisfactory account of how they acquired the animals.

In a related development, the command said it arrested five suspects on January 24, 2026, over an alleged illegal baby factory after receiving a tip-off that a 43-year-old woman, Oluwadare Onyechi, was running the operation with four others behind Inisa Hotel and Suites along Ise-Ekiti Road, Ikere Ekiti.