Police Storm Ikere Hideout, Rescue Six Children From Suspected Baby Factory Owner 

By Samuel Sunday 

Panic and confusion swept through a quiet part of Ikere-Ekiti on Saturday when police operatives broke into a hidden building and pulled out six children believed to have been held for illegal sale.

The raid followed a tip-off that an illegal baby-selling operation was being run from a house behind Inisa Hotel along Ise-Ekiti Road. 

Acting on the information, operatives of the Ekiti State Police Command moved in, cordoned off the area and forced their way into the premises.

Inside, they found six children between the ages of two and nine, all kept in conditions that raised strong suspicion of exploitation.

Police arrested the alleged mastermind, Oluwadare Onyechi, 43, along with four women — Onuoha Gloria (28), Victoria Linus (25), Ihegbogu Mercy (21) and a heavily pregnant woman, Emmanuel Esther (23). 

Residents believe the house was used to deliver, keep and later sell babies to unknown buyers.

Officers also recovered baby delivery materials, drugs believed to be used during childbirth and bottles of goya oil, items the police said point clearly to a baby-factory operation. 

The rescued children have been taken into protective care while authorities work to trace their parents and the full network behind the operation.

The shocking discovery was announced on Monday by the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, CP Joseph Eribo, during a press briefing in Ado-Ekiti, where he outlined a series of security breakthroughs recorded by the Command.

According to him, the baby-factory raid was part of a wider intelligence-led operation that has led to the arrest of dozens of criminal suspects across the state in recent weeks.

In one major operation, police dismantled a car-snatching gang that used specially fabricated master keys to steal vehicles. 

The gang, led by Uzobo Friday Agomatiro, allegedly intercepted drivers at gunpoint and removed parked cars from different parts of Ekiti. 

Two stolen Toyota Corolla cars, with fake number plates and several master keys were recovered.

Police also arrested Ibrahim Abubakar, a notorious cattle rustler and kidnapping kingpin who had been on the wanted list of Ekiti, Kwara and Kogi states. 

Officers recovered 255 stolen cattle from him. The same day, another 16 members of his gang were arrested in a forest near Isan-Ekiti with 303 rustled cattle.

In another case, police intercepted a suspected serial burglar, Ogekore Tiresimi Tosin, along the Iworoko-Ado road. 

He later led officers to criminal hideouts in Kogi and Kwara states, where stolen vehicles, food items, drinks and new clothes were recovered.

The Command also foiled the theft of 12 MTN SIM card registration devices worth about ₦13 million, arresting four suspects and recovering most of the stolen equipment.

CP Eribo said the police will continue aggressive patrols, raids and intelligence-driven operations to ensure criminals have no hiding place in Ekiti State. 

He urged residents to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities, stressing that the rescue of the six children showed how timely information can save lives and stop serious crimes.