By Opeyemi Adelakun
The Benue State Police Command has recovered a newborn baby allegedly stolen from his mother at a hospital in Gboko, with several suspects arrested in connection with the incident.
The police said the arrests followed the disappearance of the infant shortly after he was delivered at the healthcare facility on Tuesday.
The command’s spokesperson, Peter Aondongu, confirmed the development on Thursday, saying some of the suspects had been transferred to the state police headquarters in Makurdi, while others remained in custody at the Gboko Police Division.
“I can confirm to you that some suspects have been arrested in connection with the theft of a newborn baby in Gboko on Tuesday.
“Some of the suspects were earlier transferred to the state headquarters in Makurdi while other suspects are in police custody at Gboko division right now,” Aondongu said.
The newborn was reportedly taken from his mother a few hours after delivery, triggering tension at the hospital as relatives, sympathisers and concerned residents gathered at the facility.
Security personnel were subsequently deployed to the hospital to prevent a breakdown of law and order.
Woman Allegedly Posed As Nurse
An eyewitness, who spoke on condition of anonymity, alleged that the woman who took the baby had earlier been moving around the hospital while pretending to be a member of the nursing staff.
According to the witness, the baby initially failed to cry immediately after birth, prompting medical personnel to intervene before the child eventually responded normally.
The mother and newborn were subsequently moved to a ward, where the alleged impostor reportedly approached the mother and claimed she wanted to conduct another examination on the baby.
Believing that she was a nurse, the mother allegedly handed the infant to the woman.
The suspect was then said to have carried the baby towards the labour room while assuring the child’s grandmother, who had followed them, that everything was under control.
The grandmother reportedly complied and stepped aside, only for the woman to disappear with the newborn.
The eyewitness recounted the incident, saying: “Immediately after the baby was born, the infant did not cry as expected. The nurse on duty reportedly intervened, and the newborn eventually responded normally.
“Thereafter, both the mother and the baby were taken to a ward. Not long after, an alleged child trafficker approached the mother of the newborn under the pretence of being one of the nurses.
“The suspect claimed they wanted to check the baby once again. The trafficker then took the baby from the mother and headed toward the labour room.
“Sensing something amiss, the mother-in-law who had been with her daughter-in-law followed and stood at the labour room’s entrance, but she was instructed to step back, with assurances that everything would be fine; so she complied. Shortly afterwards, the strange woman disappeared with the newborn baby.”
The subsequent search for the infant reportedly heightened tension at the hospital, as nurses on duty denied taking the child from the ward and maintained that the woman who allegedly presented herself as a nurse was not part of their team.
The police have now recovered the baby and arrested suspects as investigations continue to establish how the infant was taken from the hospital and identify everyone connected to the incident.
The command has not disclosed the identities of the suspects or provided further details on where and how the newborn was recovered.
Leave a Reply