A Federal High Court in Calabar, Cross River State, has sentenced a Nigerian couple to five years’ imprisonment each for conspiring to sell their one-year-old son in an attempted child trafficking operation.
The convicts, identified as 28-year-old Emmanuel Okechukwu Ogbodo and 22-year-old Peace Ufeabuchi Nnamonu, were sentenced on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, after pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy and attempted child trafficking.
They were arraigned on November 3, 2026, on a two-count charge brought under Sections 27 and 29 of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015.
Delivering judgment, Justice Rosemary Dugbo Oghoghorie sentenced each defendant to five years’ imprisonment for conspiracy and an additional two and a half years for attempted child trafficking.
However, the court ordered that the sentences run concurrently, meaning each convict will serve a total of five years in prison rather than the combined seven and a half years.
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), which announced the conviction in statements shared on its Facebook and X accounts, disclosed that the jail terms would take effect from the date of the couple’s arrest.
Condemning the attempted sale of the child, the agency reaffirmed its commitment to prosecuting human trafficking offences and protecting vulnerable persons, particularly children.
NAPTIP also urged members of the public to report suspected cases of child trafficking to the appropriate authorities.
