Serial child trafficker arrested in Arua with 40

Police in Arua on Wednesday arrested a man suspected to have been in process of trafficking over 40 people including children to an unknown destination.

The children aged between five and 17 and other people below 28 years were being locked up in a hotel in Arua City.

The Arua Resident City Commissioner, Ms Alice Akello identified the suspect as Sabir Siraj, 27, a resident of Kawanda in Wakiso District.

She directed the police to investigate how and why the same suspect, who has been arrested several times in Maracha, Nebbi, and Onduparaka, has been coming out of police cells without being taken to court.

“We got a tip-off that there were children being kept in a hotel room and I took the initiative to find out who these children are. When I saw very young and hungry children, I wondered where they were being taken and for what reason. We launched the hunt for the suspect and fortunately got him,” Ms Akello said.

She said they got information that a bus was coming to take the children to a school identified as Al-Rahman Islamic Primary and Secondary school in Bombo but could not locate the physical presence of the school using intelligence coordination.

“The other day, a 12-year-old boy was got with the ADF in Ntoroko District and the parents happen to be coming from Arua. Let’s learn lessons, parents should not be giving their children to people they don’t know,” Ms Akello cautioned.

Ms Dawa Sauda, 28, from Munir in Yumbe District said she was recruited to go and work as a canteen attendant. She said each parent paid at least Shs230,000 for each of their children to be taken to the ‘school’ including those who were going to work as support staff.

Mr Muzaid Khemis, the Arua central division Mayor said the rest of the work will be done by security to see that sanity is brought to West Nile.

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