The puzzle surrounding the kidnapping of the Orekoya children is beginning to unravel, with the arrest of the nanny who masterminded the abduction of the three kids.
Hours after the Orekoya kids were rescued from an uncompleted building at Fatai Street in the Egbeda area of Lagos, the Lagos State Police Command finally arrested the nanny, a mother of four, who kidnapped the three boys.
The three children — 11-month-old Aderomola, four-year-old Adedamola and six-year-old Demola — were abducted by their nanny, barely 24 hours after she was hired through OLX, an online sales portal.
Upon her arrest, it was discovered that the nanny who had given her name as Mary Akinloye, is actually Funmilayo Adeyemi and hails from Osun State, not Oyo State as she had claimed.
Also, the police rescued a teenager, one Henrietta Odili, who was lured by the nanny and her husband from Benin City through OLX, and detained her against her wish for over a month.
The Commissioner of Police Kayode Aderanti, who made this disclosure yesterday, said the nanny was arrested at 9.20 pm on Wednesday in Shasha area of Lagos.
THISDAY gathered that police detectives attached to the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) had arrested her, having been on her trail since the abduction was reported.
It was however gathered that the nanny and her syndicate, comprising her husband, his brother and his wife, who are still at large, were the brains behind some of the major kidnappings involving children.
A senior police source, who spoke to THISDAY, said the sting operation was led by the officer in charge of SARS, Mr. Abba Kyari.
He said the SARS operatives were able to trace the nanny to her hideout in Shasha after several days of thorough and painstaking surveillance.
He said the SARS operatives were able to trace the nanny to her hideout in Shasha after several days of thorough and painstaking surveillance.
He said the police were able to trail and arrest the suspect based on high-tech tracking of the telephone conversations between the syndicate and the parents of the kids.
THISDAY exclusively gathered that although they had narrowed the search to a certain area, they could not make progress in pinpointing the exact house they were in.
However, the team got a helpful lead when they obtained a close-circuit television (CCTV) camera image of the nanny at the bank where the mother of the kids works.
Armed with the picture of the nanny and what she looks like, it was then easier to nab her when she came out to run an errand.
Meanwhile, a source close to the family told THISDAY that although the family could not raise the N13 million ransom that was demanded by the abductors, they were able to pay about N10million.
Meanwhile, a source close to the family told THISDAY that although the family could not raise the N13 million ransom that was demanded by the abductors, they were able to pay about N10million.
This was contrary to claims by the Lagos CP, who said no ransom was paid, stating that the syndicate decided to release the children when it became clear that the dragnet was about to close in on them.
But the family source said they were able to raise the money from concerned family members, friends and also through an online public appeal fund the family had initiated.
Also confirming the arrest, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Kenneth Nwosu, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, said with the arrest, the command was able to fulfill the promise it made to the Orekoyas.
He said: “I want to confirm to you that the nanny who kidnapped the kids has been arrested. She was arrested between 9 pm and 10 pm on Wednesday around Shasha area.
“We are making frantic efforts to arrest other fleeing members of the gang. The police team, acting on the directives of the Commissioner of Police, Kayode Aderanti, tracked the gang with bits of information made available to them and we encouraged the Orekoyas to maintain communication with the kidnappers.
“With the information gathered, the team was able to follow the link to where the nanny was arrested. We know that she did not carry out the crime in isolation. Others are involved and I promise you that in a short while, they will also be arrested.”
Speaking on the ransom said to have been paid, he said: “The police would always discourage families of kidnapped victims not to pay any money. It is against international practice.
“In fact, we are not aware if any money was paid. Anybody who says money was paid will have to explain how and where it was paid.”
In her confession, Adeyemi who is currently at the Lagos State Police Command, where she is being interrogated, said this was not their first kidnapping.
In her confession, Adeyemi who is currently at the Lagos State Police Command, where she is being interrogated, said this was not their first kidnapping.
“This is not our first operation. We are the brains behind the kidnapping of two children from Magodo last year. My job is to act as the nanny and abduct the children while my husband and others take care of the ransom and release of the children.
“With the money (N2 million) we made from the Magodo kidnapping, we moved from Ajah to a three-bedroom apartment at Coker Estate, Sasha. But my share of that money was only N30,000.
“When we kidnapped the Orekoya boys, I even begged my husband to release them after watching the video of their mother crying, I was moved by her tears.
“He promised he would release them once they paid the ransom. After they paid, he told me to leave our house and take our four kids and lodge in a hotel,” she revealed.
On how she was arrested, she said: “My husband called me to go and bring back our fan which has been at the repairers. When I got there, he was not around so I waited for him.
“We were sitting there when I saw some policemen approaching and I tried to run away but they caught me.”
Also, the teenager who was still at the Police Command pending the arrival of her family said: “They advertised on OLX that they needed a house help and I applied.
Also, the teenager who was still at the Police Command pending the arrival of her family said: “They advertised on OLX that they needed a house help and I applied.
“I used to live in Benin City, Edo State, and about a month ago, I came to Lagos to start the job, but immediately I arrived, they seized my phone so I would not contact anyone.
“It was only two weeks ago that they gave me back my phone but they still withheld the SIM card. Had they not been arrested, I would not have known what they do for a living.
“They never allowed me to hear what they were saying. They always conversed in Yoruba so I never suspected anything. The day we were arrested, I only ran because I saw my madam running.”
Speaking on the next line of action the police would take on OLX, the Lagos police commissioner said the online portal must not be allowed to continue endangering lives.
He said: “OLX will hear from us very soon because they can not use their portal to endanger the lives of innocent little children.
“If it's a marketing portal, let them use it for marketing but not use it as a platform for people to search for housemaids. Some people are so gullible and will fall for it.”
“If it's a marketing portal, let them use it for marketing but not use it as a platform for people to search for housemaids. Some people are so gullible and will fall for it.”
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