(DDM) – Fear has swept through Nkwagu community in Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State after unknown women allegedly abducted three toddlers from a residential compound located opposite a Nigerian Army barracks.
Residents say the incident has shaken confidence in local security because it happened near a military facility many people consider a safe zone.
The incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday when the children disappeared from their homes inside the shared compound.
The missing children include two baby boys and a one-year-old girl, according to families and community members.
Their mothers, Mrs. Happiness Okpuno Gladys and Mrs. Nworie Oluchi, said three unfamiliar women entered the compound as overnight guests of the landlord two days before the incident.
The women reportedly arrived on Thursday, February 6, and slept in the compound without raising immediate suspicion.
Mrs. Gladys said she went to the market on Saturday morning for her trading business before neighbours alerted her that her children were missing.
She said she rushed home and met a crowd already searching the compound and surrounding area.
She explained that she had never seen the women before and did not know their identities.
She added that the strangers spoke English and Central Igbo but could not speak the local dialect, which later made residents suspicious.
She alleged that the landlord personally allowed the women to stay overnight despite the compound not operating as a lodge or guest house.
She reported that the suspects took her two-year-old son and her one-year-old daughter.
Mrs. Oluchi said one of the same women approached her son and claimed she wanted to buy him biscuits.
She said she initially allowed it but quickly became worried because the child was unwell and needed medication.
She sent her older children to retrieve him, but they could not find the woman.
She said two other women remained in the compound and tried to calm her while asking her to wait.
She insisted on getting her child back immediately.
She said she briefly entered her room to change clothes so she could search outside.
Neighbours then reported seeing one of the women leave in a commercial tricycle.
She raised an alarm, but the remaining women also disappeared before residents could stop them.
Both mothers said their husbands were away when the incident happened.
Community members described the abduction as bold and emotionally distressing.
Many parents in the area now keep their children indoors and monitor strangers more closely.
Residents have shared descriptions of the missing children and urged transport workers and traders to watch for suspicious movements.
An emergency contact number has circulated to encourage information sharing with authorities.
The Ebonyi State Police Command confirmed the case and said officers recorded it at the Central Police Station in Abakaliki.
Police spokesperson SP Joshua Ukandu said investigators have begun efforts to trace the suspects and recover the children.
He also reminded landlords and residents to verify the identities of strangers and request guarantors before offering accommodation.
Child abduction and trafficking remain concerns in parts of southeastern Nigeria, where advocacy groups have repeatedly called for stronger community surveillance and faster reporting.
Security experts say traffickers often exploit trust within shared compounds and busy neighborhoods.
Local leaders in Izzi have urged calm while promising cooperation with police.
Families in Nkwagu now hope swift action will reunite the children with their parents and restore a sense of safety in the community.
