A 30-year-old man, Edet Essien Inyang, has been arrested for attempting to sell two of his children, one male and one female, to escape poverty in Calabar, Cross River State.

Inyang took his two children – a male and female – to Murray Street where he sought for buyers to enable him to raise money for food.

The suspect, according to our findings revealed that the money from the sales would save him from the poverty he was going through.

A witness, who gave his name as Clement Ekem said,

“He came here with the children and asked after one rich man on this street and when he did not see the man, we asked him, what he was looking, he said he was looking for someone to buy his two children.

“The man said the male child is N200, 000 and the female N150,000”

Ekem said adding that himself and others were taken aback by what the man said. They tried to stop him from taking the children elsewhere to sell.

“We had to delay him while making effort to contact the police at Atakpa Police Station which is close-by and the Police, immediately sent a team to arrest the suspect.

He said he is from Akwa Ibom State but resides in Usung Inyang which is in Odukpani Local Government Area of Cross River State”.

At the Atakpa Police Station, a senior Police Officer, who declined to give his name confirmed the arrest of the man saying the matter has been transferred to the State Criminal Division at the Police Command headquarters for further investigations.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Irene Ugbo, said she was yet to be briefed on the matter.