Couple sell their ONE-DAY-OLD baby for N250, 000 to escape poverty

A few weeks ago, Pulse reported the arrest of a cleric who ran a

Again, in the Oyigbo Local Government Area of Rivers State, another couple has been arrested for child trafficking; they sold their one-day-old baby for N250,000 so they can escape poverty and their village in Isiala Ngwa North Local Government Area, Abia State.

According to Punch, they are, Richard and Chidinma Benson and they already had four children. The wife, Chidinma says, “We sold our baby to one woman (Rose Onyia). I have four children and one is late. The baby was one day old when we sold him for N250,000. I did it with my husband’s approval.

“We wanted to leave the village because we were living in poverty. My husband was a wheelbarrow pusher and we believed that if we sell the baby, we would have enough money to come to a town in Umuahia or Port Harcourt.”

Her husband, Richard told Punch Metro that, “My wife had a big sore in one of her legs and we needed money to treat the wound. At a point, my wife could not walk; that was when we decided to sell the baby boy after he was delivered.”

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Interestingly, the child was resold to a Eucharia Jaja, for N550, 000 after which she in turn sold the infant to an unnamed person in Lagos.

Rivers State Deputy Commissioner of Police, IGP Monitoring Unit, Benneth Igwe, said the couple and 13 other suspected child traffickers have been arrested in Oyigbo and Ikwerre local government areas, “The operatives of IGP Monitoring Unit raided Afrique Hotel, Afam, in Oyigbo, Rivers State, and rescued six pregnant women. The hotel is used as a base by suspected child traffickers.

“Information further revealed that on October 7, 2018, Chidinma was delivered of a baby boy at Graceland Maternity Home, Afam. The maternity home is owned by a quack nurse called Grace Daniel.

“The couple were paid N250,000 by one Rose Onyia and the baby was later sold to one Eucharia Jaja from Omagwa for N550,000. Thereafter, the baby was sold by Jaja to a client in Lagos. Our operatives are on the trail of the last buyer to rescue the baby.”

According to Punch, some of the other traffickers arrested were, Ikechi Nwanyanwu, Oluchi Ude, Kelechi Stephen, Destiny Sunday, Mary James, Chioma Prince, Ede Loveth, Nmesoma John and Victory Ihunna, who allegedly sold another child for N750,000 before she was arrested.