Police arrest man in Lagos for abducting 5 children with puff-puff scam
Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect bought puff-puff worth N200 from one of them and immediately paid for it.
Police arrest man in Lagos for abducting 5 children with puff-puff scam
In a dramatic incident that unfolded in the Isale Eko area of Lagos Island, Lagos State, on Friday, a 20-year-old man named Maxwell Nweke was arrested for abducting five boys.
The tension escalated when members of the public discovered an unidentified woman involved in kidnapping and selling children.
Reports indicate that the woman had kidnapped children from the Ijora area and brought them to Isale Eko to sell. In a video trending on X (formerly Twitter), the woman confessed to selling each child for N50,000, totaling N250,000 for the five children.
However, Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, clarified that it was Nweke who was apprehended for abducting the boys in the Adeniji Adele area of Lagos Island.
Nweke had lured the children by purchasing N500 worth of puff-puff from them and asked them to follow him to Lagos Island to collect the money. The children became suspicious and raised the alarm, leading to Nweke’s arrest.
“Officers of Adeniji Adele arrested one Maxwell Nweke, aged 20. In his possession were five boys within the ages of eight and 12 years.
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Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect bought puff-puff worth N200 from one of them and immediately paid for it. He thereafter collected puff-puff worth N500 and asked the boys to follow him to Lagos Island to collect the money,” Hundeyin explained.
The boys have since been reunited with their parents, and investigations are ongoing. The swift response by the police and the alertness of the children prevented what could have been a more tragic outcome.
This incident highlights the ongoing issue of child abduction and the need for vigilance and quick action to protect vulnerable children in the community.
The public is urged to report any suspicious activities to the authorities to prevent such occurrences in the future.