Development is appealing to the public for information that will help reunite a 12-year-old girl, Amarachi Amos, with her family in Lagos State.
According to a statement issued by the Ministry on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, Amarachi was abducted by three unidentified men at Jakande Estate in Lagos.
She was brought to the Ministry by an officer of the Edo State Police Command after she was rescued by members of a local vigilante group at Okhuaihe Community along the Benin–Agbor Road in Edo State.
The Police officer said the child was initially taken to the Divisional Police Headquarters by the vigilante team before being transferred to the Edo State Police Command.
She was subsequently handed over to the Edo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development for care and protection.
Narrating her ordeal, Amarachi said she is 12 years old and had just completed her Primary Six Leaving School Certificate Examination at Doyin Nursery and Primary School, Lagos State. She said she lives with her family at Jakande Estate, Lagos.
According to Amarachi, on Friday, July 17, 2026, shortly after she was sent on an errand by her mother, a vehicle carrying three unidentified men stopped beside her.
She alleged that the men forcefully took her into the vehicle and drove away.
She further stated that during the journey, the men repeatedly asked her to provide the phone number of any of her relatives.
However, she told them she could not remember any family phone number.
After what she described as a long drive, the men abandoned her at Okhuaihe Community along the Benin–Agbor Road in Edo State, where she was later found by a local vigilante officer and taken to the Police.
Amarachi is currently under the care and protection of the Edo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development pending the identification and reunification of her family.
“The Ministry is therefore appealing to members of the public, particularly residents of Jakande Estate and other parts of Lagos State, who may know Amarachi Amos or her family, to contact the Edo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development or the Edo State Police Command with any useful information that will assist in reuniting the child with her parents,” the statement read.
“The Ministry remains committed to safeguarding vulnerable children and ensuring that every child in its care is safely reunited with their family as quickly as possible.
“Members of the public are encouraged to share this information widely until Amarachi is reunited with her loved ones.”
