Father of nine-month-old baby, Daniel Chigozie, tells DAUD OLATUNJI how his wife allegedly masterminded the trafficking of the infant from one buyer to another for over N1m
What is your occupation and level of education?
My name is Daniel Chigozie. I stay at Abela, Sango Ota, in the Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, but I have my fashion business in Lagos State. I am 30 years old and married. I do not have the privilege of being educated. I never attended a secondary school.
Who is the mother of the child you sold and how are you related to her?
Her name is Chinwe Blessing; she had two children before we met. One of the children is seeking admission to the university while the other is already at the University of Ilorin (in Kwara State). She was my customer before we started having an affair sometime in 2020 and she gave birth to my child, Darlington.
Why were you arrested and taken into custody by the Amotekun Corps?
I am here (in custody) because I was involved in child trafficking. I sold my child because I needed money to fund my business and assist my wife, as she has two other children who need to be catered for. One is currently seeking admission, but the other is at the University of Ilorin.
What led you into child trafficking?
It was the devil’s doing. I needed money for my business and to cater for my family. My wife gave birth through a Caesarean section. So, we needed money to take good care of her and the newborn child, while she also needed money to send to her child studying in the university.
It was reported that you sold your son to different buyers. Was that what really happened?
No, that was not what happened. I didn’t sell him the first time. When it started, I was the person who took my baby to my uncle’s wife in Sango Ota due to some financial issues I was having in my business after the birth of the baby. My wife needed money for her daughter’s education and to feed herself because of her health. She had the baby through Caesarean section and that was what made me to go to my uncle’s wife.
Did you ever consider giving the baby away in exchange for money?
We never thought or spoke about selling the baby. My wife told me to tell her (my uncle’s wife) that a lady had a baby for me and ran away and that I couldn’t take care of the baby by myself. She (my uncle’s wife) knows that I have a wife and as such, I will not be able to deal with the baby. So, she gave me money to support my business.
After two days, my wife went to her to collect the baby, saying the baby was hers. She caused a scene enough to get the baby back from my uncle’s wife.
My wife needed money to send to her daughter at the University of Ilorin. She then advised me to go out and look for money, promising that she would do the same. I told her that I didn’t have anywhere to go and that I would not be able to find money as my business was no longer profitable due to the economy of the country.
My wife then told me to call my uncle’s wife because she showed so much interest in taking care of the baby. So, I called her to explain that my wife would not be able to take care of the baby and that she was not the biological mother of the child. I told her that she could still have the baby if she was interested and she said okay and that she would speak with a friend of hers.
Did you meet the woman?
She then spoke with her friend, who is a doctor at Meiran. The friend agreed and she gave me N400,000. I later returned to the house after two days when my wife called me on the phone to ask about how we would recover the baby. She then told me to go to the police station and talk to an investigating police officer. She promised that nothing would happen to me. She said all I needed to do was to give the police my uncle’s wife’s contact and that of her friend who bought the baby. I went to the police station as she said and I did what was requested. I later returned home.
But recently, my wife told us to go to a hospital to claim that her friend gave birth to our baby and ran away and was nowhere to be found and that she (my wife) would not be able to take care of the baby.
I was then connected to a doctor at Apapa, who agreed to pay N700,000, and after the payment, I arranged to settle everyone else involved, including a nurse.
How were you arrested?
On February 15, my wife told me she was going to the market, but she suddenly came in with some policemen. I was surprised because that was not our discussion before she left home as she only told me that she was going to buy some things from the market. Immediately I saw the policemen with her, I went to the kitchen to get a knife to stab myself in the arm to prevent the police from arresting me. It was after the police people left that my wife brought Amotekun officers who arrested me. Since then, I have been in their custody. I was arrested in Sango Ota and transferred to Abeokuta.
What role has your wife played so far since your arrest?
I was the one that explained to the Amotekun Corps that we had done this business three times already. She did not tell them the truth about how it all started. After I disclosed this to them, she started threatening me that she would make sure that I rot in jail. She used to bring food for me at one point but I had to stop eating her food because I dreamt that she killed me the night before she got me arrested. Now, she is threatening to make me rot in jail.
You mentioned some amounts of money earlier. How much did you sell your child?
For the first time, I collected N150,000 from my uncle’s wife who gave me the money just because of the financial problem I had, not that I went there to sell the baby. Then I got N400,000 the second time and N700,000 the third time. I did not spend the money alone. I gave my wife her share and still made other necessary payments.
I was supposed to give a nurse N100,000 but my wife insisted that the money was too much and that I should give her N20,000 because we still had other things to pay for since it was an illegal business and we could be arrested at any time. I later spoke with the nurse who disagreed but later collected N30,000. I gave my wife N200,000 as her share and I gave her about N50,000 extra for her to buy a small phone and use the balance as transport fare.
How were you able to recover the child after selling him to buyers?
My wife was there to always claim the baby back from whoever we sold him to. As I said, she claimed him back from my uncle’s wife and her friend. She used to go and report at the police station that some people were claiming ownership of her child and she would call me to testify so that the police would recover the baby for us.
I honestly don’t know what to say. I am just very sorry for what I did (sobs). I regret my actions and I am pleading for mercy. That is all I am saying. I am begging God for forgiveness.
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