By Sijibomi Oyedepo -Fatayo

No fewer than 11 children have been declared missing from Ajegunle Community and its environs in Ikorodu area of Lagos State in the last few months. The children, whose ages range between one to five years, were reportedly kidnapped at different times.

One of the most recent of the kidnapping spree, Sunday Sun gathered, took place at Ile-Anu on Monday, May 9, 2016 with the abduction of a five-year-old girl identified as Aminat Akanni.

The victim was reportedly running an errand for her grandmother, shortly after she returned from school when

she was declared missing. Speaking with Sunday Sun, Aminat’s grandmother,

Mrs. Roseline Akanni said she became uncomfortable when her five-year-old granddaughter did not return home on time. I sent her to buy sachet water for me in the neighbourhood but when she did not return on time, I felt disturbed and decided to look for her. We are yet to find her till now,” she said.

It was gathered that the parents of the missing girl have remained inconsolable over Aminat’s mysterious

disappearance barely two months after they lost their second child, to what a source described as a strange illness.

Aminat’s father, Mr. Lukman Akanni who hails from Ogun State, told Sunday Sun that he was not around when his daughter was abducted. Mr. Akanni who said his mother broke the news to him on phone also informed Sunday Sun that the family had remained optimistic that the girl would be found. “We

have been going for prayers for the return of my daughter because I cannot afford to lose my only surviving child barely two months after I lost her brother to illness,” he said.

But the hope of seeing the little girl appeared to have

been dashed when a suspected kidnapper was arrested

recently in the community.

The kidnapper, a middle-aged woman, who was

apprehended while allegedly attempting to lure another

victim, Sunday Sun was informed, confessed to

having kidnapped some other children from the community

recently including Aminat who she allegedly sold in

Kwara State to ritualists.

Findings also revealed that another four-year-old girl

was abducted from a private nursery and primary school

in the area. Sources said the mother of the stolen girl had

withdrawn two of her three children from the school to a

public school when she could not continue to pay the school

fees. However, the two elder siblings had gone to pick their

sister who was left to continue in the private school when

she was discovered missing.

On the day the girl was abducted, it was learnt that

her elder siblings had gone to the school three times but the teacher kept telling them to come back because she

was not done with her work.

By the fourth time, the girl could not be found. A source who pleaded anonymity told Sunday Sun that the missing girl’s school bag and uniform were found in the school

premises.

“When the incident happened, the proprietress was called but she never showed up. That is why the school

was locked up,” the source said.

Investigations revealed that the first case of kidnapping in the community was recorded at Chibest bus top

when a child was kidnapped while waiting for school bus.

A member of the community, Pastor Ayodele Macaulay, said “the children were waiting for their school bus at the bus stop when one of them was kidnapped. The next day, a woman raise the alarm that her child had been kidnapped again. She said the child was abducted while defecating.

She claimed she left the child on the potty when she was going in but when she came out some minutes later, her child was gone.”

He also added that four other kidnap cases had happened before the May 9 incident at Ile-Anu.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ifedolapo Badmus could not be reached via calls or SMS for comments at the time of filing this report.