By Parrot Newspaper 
Policemen Reject N1m Bribe, Arrest Child Traffickers in Imo
By Ricky Awodi
Operatives of the Imo State Police Command have arrested two suspects involved in separate child trafficking cases while rejecting a N1 million bribe offer from one of the culprits.
The spokesperson for the command, DSP Henry Okoye, disclosed this in a press statement on Thursday, confirming that two children were rescued and reunited with their families.
According to Okoye, detectives from the State Criminal Investigation Department arrested a 32-year-old woman, Confidence Odoh, on February 4, 2025, for abducting her ex-neighbor’s three-year-old son, Nzubechi Udodiri. The incident occurred on February 1 in Umuanyo Eziobodo, Owerri West LGA, while the child was playing outside his home. Following investigations, the police successfully rescued the boy and returned him to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Udodiri Michael.
In a separate operation on February 21, 2025, operatives from the Safer Highway Unit, during a routine stop-and-search along the Owerri-Aba Expressway, apprehended a 45-year-old woman, Eze Chika, with a suspected stolen four-year-old child. Initially claiming the child was hers, Chika later confessed to purchasing the child for N1.8 million from a suspected trafficking syndicate in Aba.
In a desperate attempt to evade arrest, she offered the officers a N1 million bribe, which they rejected. The police proceeded with her arrest and secured the child’s safety. Investigations are ongoing to uncover other members of the trafficking network, while efforts are being made to locate the child’s biological parents.
The police spokesperson reaffirmed the command’s commitment to tackling child trafficking and urged parents to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities.