A 38-year-old woman identified as Chinyere Chukwu has been arrested by the Anambra State Government, through the Ministry of Women and Social Welfare, for attempting to sell her two sons.
The woman, who hails from Okija in the Ihiala Local Government Area of the state, was said to have connived with her 17-year-old daughter, Joy, to sell off her two sons “due to the economic hardship in the country.”
Chukwu, while interrogated, explained that she had 11 kids and decided to sell two of them when she could not cater to them.
Ify Obinabo, the state commissioner for women and social welfare, led some security operatives to arrest the suspects late on Tuesday after posing as buyers for the children when information about the transaction got to the ministry.
She said, “I have 11 kids, and when I could not cater to them, I decided to sell two. Since they are boys, the prices were kept at N1 million each, but after serious bargaining by the commissioner, who posed as the buyer, we decided to sell them at N1.8 million, instead of the initial N2 million.
“I developed an interest in the business and decided to embark on such an adventure after my neighbor successfully sold one of her kids. This was my first attempt at the business.
“I had only two kids for my husband and got the remaining nine children after my husband’s demise and ever since then, I have not been able to give them adequate care and support.”
Obinabo ordered that the remaining children of the suspect be taken into the state government’s custody for proper care while also vowing to apprehend the woman’s neighbor, who had sold off her kid.
The commissioner further directed that after the neighbor has been arrested, contact tracing of the kid will follow to retrieve the child.
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