Friday, May 2, 2008 ---Detectives at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Lagos have arrested a couple who sold their twins to a syndicate who specialized in selling kids in London.

Mike Mbama Okiro Nigeria Inspector General of Police

Also arrested was the kingpin of the syndicate, Mrs Helen Woma, who personally paid the sum of N120,000 each for the two baby boys.

Parading the kid sellers and the buyer syndicate, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) in charge of the SCID, Panti Oyebode Leye, gave the names of the kids’ father as John Ezeukwu and his wife, Nwakaego.

DCP Leye, who described the act as shameful, wondered why a mother could plot with her husband to get rid of two baby boys.

He revealed that even before the plan to sell the babies was hatched, the couple had attempted to get rid of the pregnancy.

“The patent medicine dealer, who attempted to abort the baby, was equally the person who introduced the kids’ parents to the buyer. The patent medicine dealer is in our custody. He has equally confessed that the children were special kids, as all the medicines their mother took did not abort the pregnancy, neither was the plans to sell them successful,” he said.

The kids’ mother, Nwakaego, told Daily Sun: “Yes, I sold the kids with the consent of my husband. I sold them for N60,000 each to Helen Woma, who told me that she would equally sell them to her elder sister in London. I sold them off when my husband told me that he would not cater for them and threatened to kill me. Trouble started for me when I went for scan and discovered that I had two boys in my womb. When I told my husband about it, he told me to terminate the pregnancy.

“I went to a chemist, who gave me injection and some pills, but the more I took the abortion pills, the more healthy the children were. I went for another scan and the kids were still there, very healthy. So, the chemists promised to assist me in selling the baby. He introduced me to Chinye Ndubuisi, who introduced me to her madam, who bought the children.”

The Imo State born Nwakaego equally narrated how she shared the proceed from her evil business.

“I gave Chinye N5,000, Abraham and Chima got N25,000. And I gave my younger brother N25,000 to improve his shoe making business.”

On how much she gave her husband, she said that when she found out that her man was legally married to another woman she decided to keep the balance for herself.

On her own, Woma told Daily Sun: “Really, I bought the kids for N120,000. He came to me and told me that she wanted to kill them. I contacted my elder sister abroad. She begged me to buy the babies for her, so, I bargained with their mother and we settled for N120,000. I did not force her to sell her kids. She came to me and begged me.”

The woman, who said she regretted her action, blamed the woman for bringing her twins to her to buy.

“She brought the idea. If not, I had not done such a thing before,” she said.

However, the state police spokesman, Mr Frank Mba, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), who countered her claim, said: “There is more to all these cock and bull stories than meet the eye. How come that the patent medicine dealer (chemist) knew Woma who bought the kids? How was it possible for him to know who needed the babies after the attempted abortion failed? We have gotten information that the person she would have transferred the children abroad came in December. We are still going to unravel so many things.”

-The Sun

Woman sells own twin boys for N120,000

Vanguard newspaper, Nigeria
Written by Evelyn Usman
Friday, May 2, 2008

A 26-YEAR-OLD woman in Lagos has sold her twin children for N120,000, citing her inability to take care of them.

Nwagego Thomas says she took the action on account of neglect, ill-treatment and denial of paternity of the twins by her 42-year-old man friend.

She was paraded by the Police in Ikeja yesterday along with the buyer, Helen Uloma, who claimed she bought the twins for her US-based barren sister.

Paraded with them were three other alleged accomplices.

Nwagego who hails from Imo State told journalists she met John Ezeugwu in a restaurant where she worked as a sales girl and thereafter started living with him.

But the relationship, according to her, turned sour when she became pregnant last year, following Ezeugwu’s outright denial of paternity. Several attempts made to terminate the pregnancy failed and when the twins, both boys, were born in February, she said she was introduced to one Helen who promised to pay her N120,000 for the babies, an offer she accepted. But the bubble burst when the supposed father of the babies got wind of the deal and alerted the Police.

Her words: “I started living with Mr John Ezeugwu over a year ago after I was chased out from the white garment church where I was living, following my refusal to indulge in a fetish bath.

I met him in the restaurant where I worked as a sales girl at the Trade Fair Complex. I became pregnant for him last year and that was when trouble started.

First, he said he was not responsible for the pregnancy and accused me of sleeping around. That was when I made up my mind to terminate the pregnancy.

I took several pills and was even given something to insert into my private part but none worked. When I went for scan and was told they were twins, I decided to leave the pregnancy.

“I eventually put to birth on February 27, 2008 at the Island Maternity. But with the delivery of the children came a total change of attitude from John. He started beating me and asked me out of his house.

I could not travel back to the village because I knew my mother would kill me. So, I began to contemplate on how to do away with the babies because I have no means of taking care of them.

An opportunity came when my friend Chinyere introduced me to Uloma who said she would pay me N120,000 for the babies. She told me she wanted to take the babies to her sister in the US and instructed me to keep sealed lips by pretending that nothing happened. She also suggested that I return to the village and stay there permanently.

“Of the N120,000, I gave Obinna, the chemist from whom I bought some drugs on credit during pregnancy, the sum of N15,000 and I gave Chinyere, the lady that introduced me to the buyer, N10,000.

When I travelled to the village, I gave my brother N25,000 to start a trade. But while in the village, my conscience started pricking me as I started thinking about the children. I could no longer stand the pressure and, therefore, had to come back to Lagos two weeks ago to inform the father of the children what I had done. It was him who contacted the Police,” she narrated..

On her part, the buyer who simply gave her name as Helen Uloma denied buying the babies. Rather, she said she only saved the babies from the claws of their mother who intended throwing them away.

Said she: “One of my stylists informed me of Nwakego’s intention to throw the babies away following her inability to take care of them.

That was when I decided to give her some money, requesting that she kept the babies with me instead of throwing them away and allowing them to die. I actually intended giving them to my sister in the USA who has been looking for a child for years,” she said.

The babies who are in good condition, are presently in the custody of the Nigerian Red Cross while the suspects, according to the Deputy Commissioner of Police in-charge of SCID, Oyeleye Oyebade, would be charged to court.