The Inspector- General of Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT) Led by DCP Abba Kyari has uncovered a Church in Porth Harcourt , Rivers State running babies factory.
According to the police, the syndicate operated from the church in Rumuolumili area of the state ,specialised in selling day-old babies to prospective buyers.
The IRT rescued three newborn babies, their mothers and three pregnant teenagers during the operation.
The Church ,Grate Mercy Deliverance Ministry, located at 3, Giwa Street in Rumuolumili area of Port Harcourt is owned by a couple, identified as Chidi Martins and Maureen Martins.
The couple was alleged to have been in the business of scouting across Rivers, Abia, Akwa Ibom, and Imo States for pregnant teenagers who couldn’t care for their pregnancies.
They allegedly deceive their victims with promises that they would provide accommodation, feeding and maternity care for them, in addition to sending them back to reunite with their families after their delivery.
However, after they have been delivered of their babies, the couple would sell the babies to waiting buyers.
Thereafter, they would tell the mother that their babies died at childbirth.
A police officer who spoke on the condition of annonimity as he was not supposed to speak to the press,said over 20 babies had been sold by the couple to different families across the country.
Nemesis, however, caught up with the couple recently when operatives of the IRT headed by DCP Abba Kyari, received information about their nefarious activities from one of their victims in Akwa Ibom State.
It was revealed that relatives of one of the victims, Patience Edet Okon, who was lured by the syndicate from Uruan area of Akwa Ibom State, reported the matter in a petition to IGP Adamu, Mohammed who directed DCP Kyari to go after the suspects.
Kyari ordered the IRT operative in Akwa Ibom state to fish out the syndicate.
The team was briefed about the disappearance of the girl and she was trailed to the couple’s church where the police also found three pregnant teenagers, including Patience Okon. Also discovered at the church were three newly born babies and their teenage mothers.
The team also found a couple from Efuru area of Delta State, who had paid the sum of N3.5million to buy a set of twins at the scene.
The police officer ,said :“Maureen is the General Overseer of the church, while her husband is an associate pastor. We are currently working on tracing over 20 children that they sold. We learned that when a child is born, Maureen will ask the mother not to breastfeed the child so that they don’t get used to breast milk. That will enable their new mothers to feed them with baby milk.”
During interrogation by the Police, Maureen who is a nurse denied being the owner of the business. She was quoted as saying: “It was a woman known as IB that introduced the business to me. She is also the one that brings the girls and sells the babies. I don’t know where she gets them from, but mine is to look after them and when they are due for delivery, I will deliver them and IB will come and take the babies to whoever that has paid. I will tell the girls that their babies are dead and give them money to return back home. It is IB that knows more about this.”
