How Doctor, Others Sold Two-month Old Baby For N342,000

The Police in Imo State have charged five persons including a medical doctor, Gordian Nwambara, to court over an alleged abduction and stealing of a two-month-old baby, Chinomso Lawrence. The sixth person among them, Ijeoma Uzochukwu, according to the police, is at large.

Those charged with the doctor before Okigwe Magistrate’s Court I, were Justina Uche, Nkeiru Maduka, Euphemia Alagor and Ann Nwangwu.

Briefing newsmen in Owerri over the matter, Police Area Commander, in charge of Okigwe, Paul Aliu, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, said the arrest and prosecution of the suspects, followed a petition by the husband of Udoka Lawrence, the victim’s 18-year-old mother that some of his wife’s relations conspired and sold a newly born baby of his wife to unknown persons.

Ironically, one of those arrested in connection with the incident is the grandmother of Udoka Lawrence.

According to Aliu, the complaint, Lawrence Egbuche reported that his wife, Udoka, was delivered of a baby boy at the Divine Maternity Home, Umuokpara Road, Okigwe, on August 7, 2009, adding that no sooner had she delivered the baby than his in-laws took his wife to Mbano where they told her that the baby had died and had been buried.

Following the complaint, the police, according to him, commenced investigations where the suspects were arrested and they later confessed to selling the baby to the medical doctor at the sum of N63,000.

According to Aliu, “Ann, also a medical doctor, and others were arrested and they made statements under caution. Ann further stated that she contacted her lady friend, Alagor, who is into child adoption business, who in turn contacted Nwambara, to whom childless couples normally come to and the baby was sold to one of them and that the sum of N10,000 was given to her as her commission,” he said.

According to him, the child was later re-sold at the cost of N342,000 to a childless couple in Lagos, adding that the boy was handed over to them on August 9, 2009, when they were equally arrested.

The police, following the investigation, travelled to Lagos where they recovered the boy from the couple who had already renamed him Lawrence.

In an interview, the victim’s mother, Udoka, confirmed the statement of the police and stated that following her persistent weeping, her husband who married her shortly after she took-in as a single girl early this year, decided to report the matter to the police.