Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Lagos State Command, have busted a baby factory in Okuju, Ilado, Badagry area of Lagos.
In the
operation carried out on Wednesday night into the early hours of Thursday, the
operatives rescued 18 pregnant women and 10 children, and arrested the
operators of the facility, Joy Okeke and Raphael Agwu.
The
victims were said to have subscribed to the facility via an offer on a Facebook
platform.
The
pregnant women, upon delivery, have their children sold and are paid between
N500,000 and N1.8m.
The
victims, between the ages of 18 and 30, were paraded at the NSCDC office,
Badagry division, Ibereko, on Friday.
Some
of the pregnant women had come to the centre with children and infants also up
for sale to willing buyers.
At the
parade, Commandant, Lagos State, NSCDC, Adedotun Keshinro, said its operatives
swooped on the big flat containing many rooms that house the victims following
actionable intelligence that lasted three weeks.
Keshinro
said, “They are operating a baby factory where victims are made pregnant. When
the babies are delivered, they are sold.
“The
suspects entice the victims who are pregnant to come and negotiate with them
that when they deliver the babies, the babies will be taken from them and
they’ll be paid off.
“When
they deliver the babies, the babies will be taken from them to be sold to their
customers, and the victims will be paid off.”
One of
the 18 victims rescued was said to have suffered a miscarriage.
“There
are 18 victims who are fully pregnant, but one of them had a miscarriage. So,
17 of them are currently carrying pregnancies. And there are other babies there
who are grown, and they are also here on negotiation to be sold to interested
buyers,” Keshinro added.
Noting
that the operators of the facility had committed a “grievous crime against
humanity,” the NSCDC Commandant said they would be handed over to the police
for prosecution, while the victims would be handed over to the National Agency
for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons.
Among
items retrieved at the facility were a pumping machine, generator set, standing
fans, gas cylinders, burner, cooking pots, phones, mats, toiletries, baby
skincare products, tableware and assorted food items.
On
what becomes of the Badagry facility, Keshinro said, “We will hand over the
place to the state government. The state government may decide to demolish the
place so that they will not be able to continue to use it for that activity.”
Answering
questions from journalists, Okeke, the chief operator of the facility, said she
arrived at the Badagry location in January from Ikorodu, in search of a bigger
apartment.
Okeke
said she adopted children for those who do not have any.
She
said, “We are adopting children to give to those who don’t have children. I
have been doing this for some months. I moved here from Ikorodu in search of a
bigger apartment. We were in Ikorodu before. We are two operating this place.”
She
declined to state how much she sells a child or how they get to the facility,
saying, “I can talk further when my lawyer is here. I don’t want to talk
anymore.
“If
you are interrogating me, my lawyer should be present.”
Speaking
with newsmen, some of the victims said they subscribed to the centre after
negotiating online with the operator that they would surrender their baby upon
delivery and be paid.
One of
the women said the agreement reached was that she would be paid the sum of N1m,
while another said she was promised N1.8m.
One,
named Joy, said she opted for the facility because she got pregnant with an
“irresponsible man.”
She
said she previously had two children who were being cared for by her mum in the
village.
The
ladies claimed that they were well-fed daily, were allowed to use their phones,
and could request medical attention if feeling unwell, except that they were
not allowed to leave the facility at will.
One of
the women further stated that part of the agreement was that they could leave
the centre before delivery, but would not receive a dime.
According
to Raphael Agwu, who was arrested alongside the operator of the facility, the
ladies come in pregnant and sign an agreement to deliver their babies and have
them sold while they are paid off.
Agwu
said he believed the centre offered an alternative to women considering
aborting their pregnancies and helped childless couples.
He
said, “There are agents on an online group who propose that instead of aborting
it, you can come to us, and we will take care of you. And when you deliver the
child, we’ll take the baby for ourselves.
“There
are groups for adoption, abortion and unwanted pregnancies on Facebook. They
are open groups. These people post that they want to give up their child for
adoption, and negotiation begins.
“They
were already pregnant on their own and decided to give birth for adoption. So,
in order for us to be safe, because of that agreement, they gave their consent
and everything.”
Agwu,
who claimed he works as a housekeeper, said the women are enticed to the
facility because of the promise of a compensation payment of at least N1
million for the sale of their child at delivery.
“They
came on their own. Some of them were referred to us by agents. Most of them
came with their children. All those children you saw are people who came with
their kids.
“Some
childless couples come to us seeking to adopt children. I didn’t see it as a
big crime because my thinking is they are helping some childless couples,” he
said.
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