The Ebonyi State Police Command has confirmed the theft of three children at Nkwagu village, opposite the Nkwagu Military Cantonment, in Abakaliki Local Government Area of the state.
The children, belonging to two separate mothers, were reportedly abducted at about 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, February 7, 2026 by three yet-to-be-identified women who posed as prospective tenants.
Narrating her ordeal, one of the victims, Mrs. Happiness Ofunna Gladys, said the suspects had arrived at the compound the previous night, held discussions with the landlord and were allowed to spend the night in one of the vacant rooms.
“I went to the market early that morning to buy goods for my business. While at the market, I received a distress call that my two children had been stolen. I immediately rushed back home and met people gathered, discussing what had happened,” she said.
“From what my neighbours told me, the same three women who spent the night in our compound were responsible. They took my two children, a boy and a girl, both between one and two years old. I am still shocked that people could come into a neighbourhood solely to steal children without arousing suspicion.”
She appealed to security agencies to ensure the suspects are arrested and brought to justice to deter others.
Another victim, Mrs. Nworie Oluchi, said she first noticed the women on the evening of February 6 when she returned from the market to prepare dinner.
“I saw the women sitting outside the compound with our landlord, discussing. I went inside and started cooking without suspecting anything,” she explained.
Oluchi said that the following morning while she was washing clothes, she went to look for her two-year-old son to administer his medication.
“When I couldn’t find him, I asked his siblings, and they told me that one of the women had sent him to buy biscuits for the other children,” she said.
“I rushed to ask the women about my son, and one of them claimed they sent him to buy biscuits and even offered to help bring him back. I went inside briefly to change my clothes, and before I came out, the children raised an alarm that the women had entered a tricycle and sped off with the three children.”
She said efforts to raise an alarm came too late, as the suspects had already escaped.
Confirming the incident, the spokesperson of the command, SP Joshua Ukandu, said the children were taken from their residence at Nkwagu Village by the women, who had visited the compound on February 6, 2026.
According to Ukanda, the matter was formally reported by the parents at the Central Police Station (CPS), Abakaliki, and investigations are ongoing to unravel the circumstances surrounding the incident and apprehend the suspects.
He added that the Commissioner of Police, CP Adaku Uche-Anya, had earlier directed members of the Landlords’ Association in Abakaliki to always verify the identities of prospective tenants and ensure the provision of credible guarantors before renting out houses.
