A 3-year-old Success Onyeisi was kidnapped from her home on December 22, 2015 and since then, the girl’s father, Godwin Onyeisi, has not known peace.

Okpara, a close friend of the victim’s family, sympathized and even helped in searching for the girl, until local people recalled that they had seen him with the child about the time she reportedly went missing.

Based on the accusation, Okpara was apprehended and transferred to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Ikeja, where he allegedly confessed that he sold the baby for N20, 000.

However, during the interrogation the suspect did not name the buyer or where he could be located.

Meanwhile, Mr Onyeisi could not believe that his close friend, whom he treated like a brother, could commit such a horrible crime.

Speaking with The Nation, the man revealed that he had spent all his savings, about N60, 000, on police investigations and other logistics to no avail.

“The worst part is that Okpara followed me to all the places I went to in search of my daughter, with the same cloth he wore when he kidnapped her.

“He was wearing the same red T-shirt that people saw him with while he took my daughter away. But he was following me as if he did not know anything about her disappearance.

“He followed me on my motorcycle to all the palaces of the Baales, all the streets and all the police stations we visited, until people who saw him with her about the time she went missing, told us and the police that he was the kidnapper,” he said.

Recalling that fateful day, when Success was kidnapped, the man said: “My older children went to fetch water at the well in a nearby compound. They went with other children in our yard. So, because we were planning to travel, my wife left Success who was watching cartoon in the room and rushed to the market.

“She was the one who called me that they have been looking for Success and have not seen her. Initially, I didn’t really take her seriously because I did not think anyone will want to harm me or my family. When I came back and they had not seen her, I started going round the neighbourhood asking questions.”

Mrs Onyeisi said that he had been looking for his daughter for several days when he started hearing information that Okpara was seen with Success. At first, the father could not believe that his friend could kidnap his little daughter was very close to him.

“Whenever my daughter is given food, she will take it to eat with him. Once we bath her, she will take her clothe to him to wear for her. She usually slept in their house, so I did not want to believe that he was behind her disappearance,” he recalled.

However, shortly after the arrest, Okpara confessed that he was the one who kidnapped Success and sold her for N20,000 through someone else to a man who lives in Okota.

While the police officers were searching for a missing child, the victim’s father was going from church to church, where he was told that his daughter was alive.

“Okpara should let me know if he has killed my daughter. If my baby is still alive, he should say where she is. How can a man like that kidnap a little girl and since then he doesn’t want to say where she is? Police need to put pressure on him to say where my baby is.”

“I have spent all my savings on the investigation of this matter. I have been giving the police money so that the case is not slowed down.

“Now I don’t even have money to pay for the school fees of my other children,” the man cried out.

The police launched a manhunt for the buyer but the baby still has not been found.