Saturday, October 31, 2026 - Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo on Friday, sentenced a middle-aged man, Bassey Edem Akpan, to five years in prison for child trafficking.
The convict was one of the six persons who conspired and
stole a child, who was sold multiple times across different States in 2019.
The victim, an indigene of Akwa Ibom State, was first sold
in Abia State for N100,000 before being transferred to Port Harcourt, Rivers
State, where the price increased to N300,000 and subsequently N400,000.
The child was later taken to Abuja, where the syndicate sold
him for N1m.
Akpan stood trial alongside five co-defendants who absconded
after being granted bail, leaving him as the only defendant to face the full
trial.
The case commenced in Itu and subsequently moved through
Ibiono Ibom before reaching Uyo, the State Capital and started de novo.
In its judgment, the Court, presided over by Justice Okon
Okon, held that the prosecution had established its case against Akpan and
found him guilty of child stealing.
The court sentenced him to five years imprisonment, with the
sentence to take effect from the date of judgment.
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