Nigeria’s leading airline, Air Peace, has again demonstrated strong vigilance and crime alertness by foiling a man and woman’s attempt to traffick two babies at Malala Muhammed Airport, Terminal 2, Lagos, on June 7, 2021.

As disclosed in a media statement released by Air Peace’s Spokesperson, Stanley Olisa, the airline’s Passenger Service Executives and Security Personnel smelt a rat when the two adults, travelling to Asaba, were being checked in at the counter.

The statement reads: “On June 7, 2021, at MMA2, around 12:00 hours, a man and a woman, carrying two babies, approached our counter for check-in. Our Passenger Service Executive, being suspicious of the duo’s behaviour, questioned them about the babies. They said the babies belonged to them and were travelling to Asaba”.

In the ensuing investigation, Olisa revealed that the two adults, who hinted that the babies were three months old each, were questioned by a second counter staff member and security officials, but they told a different story.

“The two adults gave conflicting explanations to different staff- that the babies were being taken to the United Kingdom to unite them with their parents and later they said they were sending the babies to Zimbabwe for adoption”, he added, while also commending the staff for preventing the crime.

In response to further questioning, the adults admitted that they were not the babies’ parents. As a result, Air Peace’s Security Unit arrested both of them and took them to the MMA2 Police Station where they admitted they were agents involved in the trafficking of children.

The Police said they would transfer the case to the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for further investigation and action.

It can be recalled that the Air Peace crew prevented two child trafficking schemes in June 2018 on a Lagos–Banjul flight and in January 2019 on a Lagos-Port Harcourt flight respectively.