The nine were arrested by the police yesterday after initially escaping during a raid of the ‘baby factory’.
Their
arrest brings to 26 the number of victims rescued from Ahamefula
Motherless Babies Home, Umuaka in Njaba Ciouncil Area of the state.
They are aged between 14 and 25.
RELATED ARTICLE:
Imo police smash baby factory, nab impregnator, rescue 17 pregnant teenagers
The
visibly exhausted girls told The Nation that they were held against
their wish by the proprietor of the so-called motherless babies home
simply known as Madam One Thousand.
The victims are all from Imo .
They said their parents were unaware of their whereabouts.
According to them, they were taken to the ‘baby factory’ by scouts engaged by Madam One Thousand.
The scouts include women who go about seeking vulnerable girls.
17-year
old Adaobi Akubueze ,until her abduction a student in Lagos, said she
referred to the centre by a medical doctor who conducted a pregnancy
test on her.
She said:“The result of the test was positive and
the doctor said I should not abort the pregnancy. He said he knew where I
could go and have the child with adequate maternal care and where the
baby would be taken care of until I would be ready to take charge.
“So
I ran away from home without informing my parents. But on getting to
the centre in Imo State, I was asked to produce my letter of
introduction. After that, my phone was taken away from me and that was
how I stayed there till the Police came and arrested us.”
She
said of conditions in the centre: “We were kept in a crowded room with
little ventilation and a doctor came once in a while to check us. Nobody
was allowed to go beyond the first gate also known as the Green Gate.
And one boy who we referred to as oga came around to sleep with the
girls, especially those that were not yet pregnant.
“The compound
was built in such a way that made escape impossible. It is fenced with
high walls and no visitor was allowed to come into the area where the
girls were kept, except Madam, Oyibo and the doctor.
“After nine
months, those who were due to be delivered were taken to another
location and Madam would only bring back news to us that our friend had
given birth. But they never came back ”.
Another victim, Chinyere
Onwuegbu, also 17, said she was living with her mother, a widow, until
she ran away with one of her friends who convinced her that she could
make a huge amount of money if she could be pregnant and sell the child
after delivery.
Her words: “My friend brought me here and she
told me to stay and get pregnant. Madam promised to take good care of me
and that she would give me N60,000 if I had a baby boy and N30,000 if
it was a girl.
“ But after I was impregnated, Madam began to
force me to work hard despite my condition. I cried everyday but no way
to escape”.
From outside, the ‘baby factory’ looks very much like a pure water production facility.
It sits on an expansive land and is walled round.
The main building has several rooms secured with iron doors.
A
neighbour, who volunteered information on condition of anonymity, said:
“All we saw were people coming to buy water but we began to express
worry when we noticed flashy cars coming to the place at nights.”
Investigation
also revealed that the owner of the ‘baby factory’ also runs a
maternity home where the victims are taken to be delivered of their
babies.
Oyibo, who was identified by the girls as the one who impregnated most of them, denied that he was paid to impregnate them.
He
said: “I was employed to work in the pure water company, but I have
slept with most of the girls but not to impregnate them as reported.”
Who is Madam One Thousand?
It
was gathered that Madam One Thousand is no stranger to the police
having been arrested by them at least twice before for a similar
offence.
A source, who asked not to be named, said: “If the
police are serious, they can arrest her; they know her identity. She has
been in this trade for a long time. She even has medical doctors who
work for her.
“Apart from that, since she also runs a registered
maternity home, why can’t the police look in that direction and get her
identity from the Ministry of Health that registered her clinic?”
Sources said she is at the head of a syndicate that also includes doctors.
The doctors refer victims to her and get paid accordingly.
Efforts
to get the Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Katsina, and the Police
Public Relations Officer, Joy Elemoko, to comment on what becomes of the
girls were unsuccessful as they did not pick calls to their handsets.
However,
a reliable police source said the girls would be handed over to the
Ministry of Women Affairs after proper documentation for adequate
medical attention as some of them are ill.
They
will will unveiled at an event, which would be held in Lagos on
Thursday, May 16, 2013 at the Lagos Sheraton Hotels and Towers, Ikeja.
Fondly
called Igodomigodo, Obahiagbon who is known for his jaw-breaking words
took to a popular social network to speak about the ongoing political
ruckus in Rivers state.
She
said, “My husband feels good when I step out for a red carpet event and
other men admire me. Everyone likes to show off something that they
like and something they think is beautiful. I think it is a good feeling
for him.”
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The
deceased, popularly known as Baba Ibeji (Father of twins), according to
eye witnesses and his colleagues who sell telephone accessories met his
untimely death when a telecommunication mast fell on him as he dashed
across Marina Street to fetch a waterproof cover for his goods as it was
about to rain.
The
Real Madrid manager, who was in the running to replace the Scot, also
admitted that playing at Old Trafford, will never be the same again.