A two weeks old baby has been reportedly rescued from a
Cameroonian couple, Mr. Kamsol Ayang and wife, Theresa Asamoa in Calabar, Cross
River State by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons
and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP). The officials in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, are
currently in the custody of the baby.
Officials of the Nigeria Immigration Services intercepted
the couple with the two-week-old baby at the Nfum control post in Etung Local
Government Area in Cross River State. Cross River State’s Comptroller of the
Immigration Service, Mrs. Funke Adeuyi, made the disclosure while fielding
questions from newsmen shortly after parading the suspects at the Immigration
Office in Calabar.
Adeuyi said: "The
baby looked so weak and pale, as if he had not tasted breast milk. Neither the
baby’s eyes nor body was moving, a situation that sparked suspicion. The couple
claimed to have been married for 15 years, and decided to leave Cameroon for
Nigeria to take herbal drugs that would make her pregnant.
"After searching their travel documents, we found out that
their surnames did not tally although they claimed to have been married for 15
years. This gave room for suspicion. Our officers at the control post had to
refer them to the state command for second line investigation and profiling.
"We equally realised that the baby in question was not
active for the whole period of the interrogation and this made our second line
investigation very powerful. After further investigation, she told us that she
was given herbal drugs that would make her pregnant."
Adeuyi said the woman also claimed to have delivered and
that the baby was given to her at the herbal medical clinic somewhere in
South-West Nigeria. On her part, the suspect, Mrs. Asamoa, said it was part of
their culture in Cameroon for a nursing mother to drink traditional medicine
for some time before feeding the new born baby with breast milk.
Her words: "Someone in Cameroon introduced me to an herbal
home here in Nigeria. I went there and was given herbal medicine for pregnancy.
After nine months, I was pregnant and I came back to Nigeria for delivery. This
is my baby," Theresa Asamoa insisted.
An official of NAPTIP operating in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Mr.
Victor Obazee, while receiving the baby, lauded NIS for a thorough job and the
steady patrol team, which they maintain in the border areas of Cross River
State.
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