A medical doctor identified as Emmanuel Chimaobi Ugwumba has been remanded at the Nigerian Correctional Custodial Centre in Enugu State, following his arrest on charges of child trafficking and forgery.
Ugwumba, 52, was apprehended on September 28, 2024, by officers from the Anti-Kidnapping Tactical Squad. According to the Enugu State Police Command, the arrest came after a public notice Ugwumba published about an abandoned child was intercepted.
The notice, which appeared in the Daily Sun newspaper on Friday, September 27, 2024, was falsely endorsed in the name of the Enugu State Ministry of Gender and Social Development. Ugwumba claimed to be the director of an organization called OTZ.
The police said the notice was part of a larger scheme that led to his involvement in child trafficking. Upon his arrest, the police rescued a pregnant woman and two young children—a four-year-old and a two-year-old, both female—who were found to be victims of Ugwumba’s alleged trafficking activities.
Investigations revealed that Ugwumba, who is originally from Ezimo-Agu in Udenu Local Government Area, owns and operates Chima Hospital and Maternity in Ugbaike, Enugu-Ezike, Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area.
It was gathered that between 2017 and 2024, Ugwumba was accused of conspiring with an alleged staff member of the Ministry of Gender and Social Development to facilitate the delivery of seven children at his hospital.
These children remain unaccounted for, and investigations are ongoing to trace their whereabouts. The police also discovered Ugwumba had unauthorised documents from the Ministry of Gender Affairs and unverified pest control certificates.
On Wednesday, October 9, Ugwumba was arraigned in court and remanded in custody as the investigation continues.