A couple, Uchenna Eziekwe, 28, and Chineye Eziekwe, 22, has been arrested by detectives from the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly attempting to sell their 2-year-old child.
The couple’s motive was to use the proceeds from the sale to secure travel documents for the husband to enable him to travel to Canada.
The incident came to light when the couple declared their intention to sell their son at Isolo General Hospital, located in the Isolo area of Lagos State. Hospital management promptly alerted the police at Isolo Division, leading to the couple’s arrest.
In their confession to the police, the couple admitted to attempting to sell their child for an undisclosed sum, citing the economic hardship in the country as their justification. They expressed remorse and pleaded for forgiveness, stating that they believed selling their child to someone who could provide for him was preferable to letting him suffer from hunger.
Uchenna Eziekwe, while being paraded at the Command Headquarters in Ikeja, admitted that the decision was difficult but felt necessary given their circumstances.
The command spokesman, Benjamin Hundeyin, disclosed that the couple was apprehended on Tuesday, July 9, 2024, as they were in the process of selling the child. The child was rescued and is safe, while investigations into the matter continue.
