Police Nab Fake Pastor, Woman After Rescuing Abducted Four-Week-Old Baby

The Niger State Police Command has arrested a fake pastor and his alleged accomplice over the abduction of a four-week-old baby in Minna.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, disclosed this in a statement issued on Saturday in Minna.

Abiodun said the incident was reported at the ‘A’ Division, Minna, on July 14 at about 10:00 a.m., after a four-week-old baby was deceitfully taken from its mother around the Mobil Roundabout area of the city.

He explained that detectives immediately commenced investigations and deployed technical intelligence, which led to the arrest of one Chidi Johnson, popularly known as “Yaron Pastor,” aged 24, of Abdulsalam Quarters, Minna.

According to the police spokesperson, the suspect confessed during interrogation that he acted on the instructions of a woman identified as Zainab Ibrahim, 22, of Alagbado Area, Minna, who currently resides in Sokoto State.

“During investigation, he confessed that Zainab Ibrahim, 22, of Alagbado Area, Minna, but residing in Sokoto State, had contracted him to procure a newborn baby following her reported miscarriage,” Abiodun stated.

The police said Johnson allegedly lured a nursing mother and her four-week-old baby to the Kasuwan Gwari area on July 13 at about 12:00 p.m., where the child was taken from the unsuspecting woman.

Further investigation led to the arrest of Zainab Ibrahim, who was identified as the alleged mastermind behind the plan.

The abducted baby was successfully rescued by the police and reunited with the mother.

Abiodun said both suspects remain in police custody and are assisting investigators with further inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the crime.

He added that the command was working to determine whether the suspects were linked to any wider child trafficking or abduction network operating within or outside the state.

The police assured residents that investigations would be thorough and that anyone found connected with the crime would face prosecution in accordance with the law.

The Commissioner of Police also urged members of the public to remain vigilant and promptly report suspicious activities to security agencies, stressing that timely information from residents played a vital role in the successful rescue of the infant and the arrest of the suspects.