He said the suspect, who had been on the wanted list of the police, was arrested following a tip-off received by men of the command.

“The Police in Nasarawa State says it has arrested a 35-year-old woman, Rifkatu Haruna, for allegedly stealing a three-year-old male child in the state, The PUNCH reports.

During a parade of the suspect and 18 others on Wednesday in Lafia, the state Commissioner of Police, Adesina Soyemi, noted that Haruna was apprehended in Garaku, in the Kokona Local Government Area of the state.

He said the suspect, who had been on the wanted list of the police, was arrested following a tip-off received by men of the command.

The commissioner added that preliminary investigation into the case revealed that the woman, who allegedly collaborated with other suspects, stole the baby from Garaku town and planned to sell him to a prophetess in Enugu State.

“The traffickers took the child to Enugu State, but could not sell him, so they brought him back. The suspect ran out of luck and was arrested; other accomplices are still on the run.

“We are now trailing the other suspects and I promise to do everything within the law to ensure that they are apprehended no matter their status in the society,” he added.

When our correspondent spoke to the suspect, she confirmed that she was arrested in Garaku town while returning the baby to his mother.

She, however, denied belonging to a syndicate, adding that she only helped the woman to rescue her stolen child.

Haruna said, “I am not a member of the gang and I did not steal the baby. I only wanted to help the mother of the child locate her stolen baby. I am innocent of the crime.”

While warning criminal elements to leave the state, Soyemi said all the suspects would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Lafia for further investigation after which they would be charged to court.

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