Ebonyi Family Petitions NAPTIP Over Missing Baby Rescued By Police Officer
The family of Police Inspector Charity Agwu has petitioned the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) to investigate the disappearance of a baby boy she rescued from a mentally challenged woman. The incident occurred on December 2, 2022, when Inspector Agwu reported the rescue to the Ebonyi State Police Command, and the child was subsequently handed over to the state Ministry of Women Affairs, which took him to a motherless babies’ home in Abakaliki.
However, the baby’s whereabouts have since become unknown, with Inspector Agwu now being suspected of involvement in his disappearance. Her family has denied the allegations and is seeking NAPTIP’s assistance in locating and retrieving the child.
In a petition dated July 21, 2024, addressed to NAPTIP’s Director General, Prof. Fatima Waziri-Azi, the family recounted the events surrounding the baby’s rescue. They explained that Inspector Agwu was denied access to the child after he was taken to the motherless home, and the child’s current location remains a mystery.
The petition, written by Inspector Agwu’s elder sisters, Mrs. Janet Alex and Chinyere Nwele, calls for a thorough investigation into the child’s disappearance. It also recounts the circumstances of the rescue, during which Inspector Agwu encountered a mentally challenged woman carrying the baby in a plastic bag. Despite Agwu’s efforts to ensure the child’s well-being, she was met with resistance from her superiors when trying to officially document the case.
The petition further describes how tensions escalated between Inspector Agwu and her colleagues over the custody of the child, leading to Agwu’s detention and eventual transfer of the baby to the Ministry of Women Affairs. The family is now calling on NAPTIP to hold those involved accountable for the baby’s disappearance, including officials from the police and the ministry.
The petition has also been copied to the Police Service Commission, the Inspector General of Police, and the National Human Rights Commission.
