60 year old woman arrest in Oyo for allegedly buying five babies at N5m
The Oyo
state police command has arrested 60-year-old Asabi Adebayo pictured above, for
allegedly buying five babies (two boys and three girls) ranging from 2 years,
eight months, seven months, six months and four months, at N5 million from
Port-Harcourt, Rivers State.
According to Tribune, Asabi who is a US-returnee, was arrested at an orphanage in Oyo where she had gone to obtain a certified police report to put the babies up for adoption.
Asabi who was paraded alongside other suspects at the Oyo state police command on Wednesday April 20th, told the Tribune that she had been in search of a child for many years
According to Tribune, Asabi who is a US-returnee, was arrested at an orphanage in Oyo where she had gone to obtain a certified police report to put the babies up for adoption.
Asabi who was paraded alongside other suspects at the Oyo state police command on Wednesday April 20th, told the Tribune that she had been in search of a child for many years
“I had been looking for
fruits of the womb for many years until I reached menopause. Over two years
ago, someone introduced me to a woman at Ikorodu, Lagos State, who could
facilitate pregnancy through herbal concoction, so I and other women went there
and were given the concoction. After that, I had sex with my partner. I am
not married. We took the concoctions for nine to 10 months before we
delivered. For delivery, we were taken to Port Harcourt. I delivered twins from
the first pregnancy over two years ago. I got pregnant the second time and had
triplets about a year ago. I paid N1million for the treatment on each of the
children. In total, I paid N5million. I breast-fed my children for three months
before weaning them as babies. ”
When asked why she had
to pay N1million on each child since multiple births could come from any
pregnancy, Asabi replied that the woman who gave her treatment told her ahead
of delivery that she would pay according to the number of babies from each
delivery. She said that she took the police to the place where she
delivered the babies in Port Harcourt but the operators of the fertility
clinic, a couple, were nowhere to be found.
On how she found herself in Ibadan though residing in Lagos State, she said: “I came because the owner of an orphanage I approached said that if I wanted to get the children adopted, I would need to get a police report to take them out of Nigeria.”
Asabi denied claims of
buying the children. She said the fertility hospital that helped her get
pregnant was run by a couple, Mr and Mrs Okoro who are currently at
large.
Speaking on her arrest,
the state Commissioner of Police, Leye Oyebade, said she was suspected to be
part of a child trafficking syndicate who sell children to people residing
abroad. According to Leye, Asabi was arrested after the force received a report
from the proprietress of an orphanage in Ibadan on April 14, 2016, that the
suspect requested her to assist in getting a police report to fly her five
children abroad.
“I directed the officer in charge of the Juvenile Welfare Centre of the Division to arrest her. When she got to the station, she told the police that she got the children for N1million each. She confessed that she got the children from a woman in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, but when the police from Oyo State command got there, the woman, who probably got a hint that the police were after her, could not be seen. We are trying to find out how the person who sold the babies came about them. Before we can get the details of the children, we have to get the person who sold them because she is the one that can give account of how she came about them. While at that, we have been able to identify that these are children that have been sold and for us to trace their origin, it will take some time. Investigation is still ongoing,” the police commissioner stated.
All the children have
been handed to officials at the state Ministry of Women Affairs while
investigations into the matter is ongoing.
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