No fewer than 14
pregnant girls and ladies have been rescued by men of the Abia State Police
Command after they raided an alleged illegal maternity home.
The police said the
martenity home was allegedly being used as a baby factory at Umukpeyi village
in the Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area of the state.
The age of the victims,
according to the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Udeviotu Onyeke,
range from 14 to 25.
Onyeke explained that
the alleged baby factory belonged to a “notorious child trafficking syndicate
leader in the state, simply known as "Madam Nma”.
The police spokesman
said the rescue followed intelligence report that the principal suspect and the
proprietor of the illegal maternity home had been habouring pregnant teenagers
in the home for commercial purposes.
He said when
interrogated, some of the suspects claimed they came from Imo, Anambra, Enugu
and Rivers states.
He said, “Majority of
those rescued claimed that they were brought to the home by sympathisers after
they were driven away from their homes when it was discovered that they had
unwanted pregnancies.”
Onyeke said while 12
out of the 14 suspects were confirmed pregnant, two said they came to check if
they were pregnant.
The police said the
owner of the illegal maternity home escaped arrest as she was not at home
during the raid, but added that efforts were on to track her down.
The PPRO appealed to
members of the public with any useful information on her whereabouts to
volunteer same to the police for prompt action.
It will be recalled
that the said suspect was earlier this year paraded by the police at the
Officers Mess, Umuahia.
The police had then
told journalists that she was picked up at Uyo after many years of evading
arrest, assuring the people of the state that she would be arraigned in court
as soon as investigations were over.
- Punch
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