AfriPulse
The Department of State Services says it has released Walida Ibrahim, the Jigawa State teenager whose disappearance in 2023 sparked widespread controversy, to the Jigawa State Government under Governor Umar Namadi.
In a statement issued on Thursday by the Deputy Director of Public Relations and Strategic Communications at the DSS National Headquarters in Abuja, Favour Dozie, the agency confirmed that the handover occurred around 5:45 pm on February 26, 2026.
“The Department of State Services hereby confirms official release of the above named to Jigawa State Government led by Governor Umar Namadi among other state officials.
“This decision, at the instance of the Director General, State Security Service, was taken following completion of findings by the joint investigation committee set up to probe the allegations surrounding her disappearance from her parents.
“The interagency committee comprised officials from the Ministry of Women Affairs, International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Muslim Lawyers Association (MULAN), as well as notable civil society organisations, Arewa Youth Assembly (AYA) and National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN),” the statement read.
It added: “As earlier assured, the Service, about 1745hrs today, February 26, handed her to state authorities to be housed in one of the state government’s facilities under the protection of security agencies, while awaiting the completion of all litigations.”
Walida, who was reportedly 16 at the time of her disappearance in November 2023, went missing for over two years before resurfacing in connection with Ifeanyi Onyewuenyi, described as a serving DSS operative.
She gave birth to a baby girl in November 2025.
The case drew significant public and media attention, including allegations of abduction, exploitation and forced conversion, prompting court interventions and calls from civil society groups for her reunion with her family.
In an exclusive interview published by Daily Trust on February 21, Walida narrated her version of events from DSS custody in Abuja.
She described leaving her home in Anku, Hadejia, in 2023 after meeting a woman named Mariam while fetching water.
Walida said she followed Mariam without knowing why and was taken to various locations, including a house in Hadejia with other females, and later to Mariam’s home in Gandu, where she alleged abuse by Mariam’s husband, Abdullahi Isiyaku, and his co-wife, Fatima.
She said she was renamed Chinasa, and that attempts to escape led to beatings and forced relocation to Abuja.
Walida recounted that while wandering in Abuja before Easter 2024, she met several people, including a tricycle rider, and eventually encountered Ifeanyi, whom she asked for food.
She said Ifeanyi introduced her to his sister in Abuja and asked that she be accommodated, but the sister declined, saying she did not know her.
However, she said Ifeanyi insisted on helping her.
Walida said she followed him home, lived with him by consent, became his girlfriend, got pregnant and gave birth to a baby girl named Onyechi in November 2025.
In late December 2025, after fainting during New Year crossover prayers, she said she regained consciousness, initially denied knowing Ifeanyi and contacted her father, leading to family involvement and DSS proceedings.
“On December 31, 2025, during crossover prayers, I had a severe headache and my eyes turned red. Ifeanyi called his sister, who advised him to give me paracetamol. The next day, January 1, the headache persisted. I fainted, and when I regained consciousness, I asked him where I was. He was shocked. I told him I didn’t know him at all, and insisted that wasn’t the house I had been living in before. He begged me not to escalate the matter, fearing neighbors might intervene. I cried and asked for a phone to call my father because I wanted to go home.
“He took me to his sister’s house and explained what happened. She called me Chinasa, but I denied ever bearing that name. She asked what my real name was, and I said Walida. I requested a phone to call my father. They asked if I could, and I said yes. She suspected I was afflicted, but I said I was fine. They gave me a phone, and I called my dad,” she told Daily Trust.
Walida denied being abducted or forcibly converted to Christianity and insisted her relationship with Ifeanyi was consensual.
She expressed a desire to live with him rather than return to her family, citing fear of harm.
She rejected claims of forced conversion, noting that no one compelled her religiously.
After efforts by her relatives to recover her from Ifeanyi proved abortive, a petition was reportedly filed by her uncle at the DSS headquarters in Abuja.
Thereafter, the family approached a court in Jigawa State.
The DSS subsequently took Walida into custody and detained Ifeanyi for investigation.
The court directed that Walida be released to her parents, but the DSS filed a counter-motion, insisting that it was investigating the matter.
According to reports, Governor Namadi, accompanied by senior state officials, including the Speaker of the Jigawa State House of Assembly, the Attorney-General and the Commissioner for Women Affairs, received Walida at the DSS headquarters in Abuja late Wednesday.
The governor described her as “a daughter of Jigawa State” and pledged the government’s full support for her safety, recovery from any trauma and welfare, while assuring that justice would be pursued through the courts.
The DSS statement noted that Walida would remain in a secure state facility as litigation proceeds.
The agency assured continued cooperation and transparency throughout the ongoing legal matters.
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