The Imo
State police command, earlier in the week, rescued 17 pregnant teenagers from a baby making factory. (Read HERE
). Below is an update on the story.
Nine girls, forced into pregnancy at a ‘baby factory’ in
Imo State ,yesterday spoke of how they became victims. The nine were arrested
by the police yesterday after initially escaping during a raid of the ‘baby
factory’.
Their arrest brings to
26 the number of victims rescued from Ahamefula Motherless Babies Home, Umuaka
in Njaba Ciouncil Area of the state. They are aged between 14 and 25.
The visibly exhausted
girls said that they were held against their wish by the proprietor of the
so-called motherless babies home simply known as Madam One Thousand. The victims
are all from Imo .
They said their
parents were unaware of their whereabouts.
According to them,
they were taken to the ‘baby factory’ by scouts engaged by Madam One Thousand.
The scouts include
women who go about seeking vulnerable girls.
17-year old Adaobi
Akubueze ,until her abduction a student in Lagos, said she referred to the
centre by a medical doctor who conducted a pregnancy test on her.
She said:“The result
of the test was positive and the doctor said I should not abort the pregnancy.
He said he knew where I could go and have the child with adequate maternal care
and where the baby would be taken care of until I would be ready to take
charge.
“So I ran away from
home without informing my parents. But on getting to the centre in Imo State, I
was asked to produce my letter of introduction. After that, my phone was taken
away from me and that was how I stayed there till the Police came and arrested
us.”
She said of conditions
in the centre: “We were kept in a crowded room with little ventilation and a
doctor came once in a while to check us. Nobody was allowed to go beyond the
first gate also known as the Green Gate. And one boy who we referred to as oga
came around to sleep with the girls, especially those that were not yet
pregnant.
“The compound was
built in such a way that made escape impossible. It is fenced with high walls
and no visitor was allowed to come into the area where the girls were kept,
except Madam, Oyibo and the doctor.
“After nine months,
those who were due to be delivered were taken to another location and Madam
would only bring back news to us that our friend had given birth. But they
never came back ”.
Another victim,
Chinyere Onwuegbu, also 17, said she was living with her mother, a widow, until
she ran away with one of her friends who convinced her that she could make a
huge amount of money if she could be pregnant and sell the child after
delivery.
Her words: “My friend
brought me here and she told me to stay and get pregnant. Madam promised to
take good care of me and that she would give me N60,000 if I had a baby boy and
N30,000 if it was a girl.
“ But after I was
impregnated, Madam began to force me to work hard despite my condition. I cried
everyday but no way to escape”.
From outside, the
‘baby factory’ looks very much like a pure water production facility.
It sits on an
expansive land and is walled round.
The main building has
several rooms secured with iron doors.
A neighbour, who
volunteered information on condition of anonymity, said: “All we saw were
people coming to buy water but we began to express worry when we noticed flashy
cars coming to the place at nights.”
Investigation also
revealed that the owner of the ‘baby factory’ also runs a maternity home where
the victims are taken to be delivered of their babies.
Oyibo, who was
identified by the girls as the one who impregnated most of them, denied that he
was paid to impregnate them.
He said: “I was
employed to work in the pure water company, but I have slept with most of the
girls but not to impregnate them as reported.”
Who is Madam One
Thousand?
It was gathered that
Madam One Thousand is no stranger to the police having been arrested by them at
least twice before for a similar offence.
A source, who asked
not to be named, said: “If the police are serious, they can arrest her; they
know her identity. She has been in this trade for a long time. She even has
medical doctors who work for her.
“Apart from that,
since she also runs a registered maternity home, why can’t the police look in
that direction and get her identity from the Ministry of Health that registered
her clinic?”
Sources said she is at
the head of a syndicate that also includes doctors.
The doctors refer
victims to her and get paid accordingly.
Efforts to get the
Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Katsina, and the Police Public Relations
Officer, Joy Elemoko, to comment on what becomes of the girls were unsuccessful
as they did not pick calls to their handsets.
However, a reliable police source said the girls would be handed
over to the Ministry of Women Affairs after proper documentation for adequate
medical attention as some of them are ill.
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