A man named Fouad Willoughby has raised an alarm over the sudden disappearance of his three-year-old son, Abdul-Muqseet Willoughby, during the Eid festival on Sunday. The incident occurred at the family’s home on Ajagun Lane, Lagos Island.
Willoughby shared with Newsmen on Monday that his son vanished after they returned from the Eid prayer ground. He explained that he had left his son in the compound with family members while he helped with the ram slaughtering. He expressed concern that residents in the area were not familiar with the missing child, which could complicate the search efforts.
“I do not live in Lagos. I only came for the Sallah holiday at my parents’ house. After we returned from the Eid prayer ground, I was busy with the ram slaughtering. The setting he was last seen in is a big compound (Agbole), and many people slaughter rams in each house,” Willoughby said.
He further explained, “He was last seen sitting with my mother and nephew, who is also a little child. My mother is not physically fit, so she did not notice when he left her side. My wife brought him to the family house that morning. No one knows him around here; he is new, unlike his elder brother, who has friends and is known by residents.”
Willoughby noticed his son’s disappearance around 10 a.m. and immediately raised an alarm, informing people in the vicinity. They searched various mosques and went to the Adeniji Police Station to report the incident. Friends have also gone to radio stations and started posting the child’s photo on social media. “I cannot go back to Ilorin without him because I came with six children,” he added.
Efforts to reach the spokesperson for the Lagos State Police Command, Benjamin Hundeyin, were unsuccessful, as he did not respond to calls or texts at the time of this report.
In a related incident, a nine-year-old girl named Patience, who went missing from Rotras Crescent in the Meiran area of Lagos State, was found in Sango-Ota, Ogun State, following a report. Her guardians sought assistance in locating her eight days after her disappearance was reported to the local police division.
