Five-year-old girl abducted at Redemption Camp

Oluwaseun Ogungbemile

The abduction of a five-year-old girl, Oluwaseun Ogungbemile, at the Redemption Camp of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, has thrown her parents into panic.

It was learnt that the girl, in company with her parents, had gone to the camp at Kilometre 46 on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State, to attend the one-week annual convention of the church that ended on Sunday. We learnt that the girl, who is the youngest child of her parents, was last seen playing with two of her cousins on Friday, August 9, 2013.

The victim’s aunt, Omotade Odunowo, told our correspondent that the matter had been reported to the police.

She said, “She (Oluwaseun) was staying at a rented chalet in the camp along with her parents. Around 10am on that day, she was seen with two of her younger cousins, who are between the ages of two and three.

“After sometime, we did not see her again. Due to the young ages of the little children who were with her at the time of her disappearance, we have not been able to know what happened exactly.”

Odunowo said all efforts to trace the victim’s whereabouts proved abortive and the family believed that she had been abducted.

She said the family had searched every nook and cranny of the camp and reported to the relevant authorities in RCCG, all to no avail.

She added that no one had called the family to demand a ransom.

Odunowo said, “We have been traumatised since then and cannot wait for the safe return of our daughter back home. We shall therefore be extremely grateful to receive any information that may lead to our reunion with Oluwaseun. She is adorable, smart and talks a lot.”

She said the girl’s parents had not been alright since the incident. She said the mother had refused to go back to work since her daughter went missing.

She said, “Oluwaseun’s mother has not left the Redemption Camp since the incident occurred. She is still hoping that the person that took her away would bring her back.”

When contacted on the telephone, the state police  command’s Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, confirmed the incident to our correspondent, adding that the matter was being investigated at the Redemption Camp Police Station.

 “The parents of the victim said they came to the camp with eight children and one of them had gone missing. We have swung into action and we want to assure the family that the little girl will be found,” he said.

 A security official at the church, who refused to identify himself, said the matter had been reported to the police.

He however refused to disclose further information, adding that it was not the wish of the church that the news of the abduction be leaked to members of the public.