A suspected baby factory in Port Harcourt belonging to a Pastor identified as Glory Raphael which was raided by operatives of the Rivers State Police Command, led to the arrest of the Pastor and 16 pregnant women.Three other persons helping the cleric to run the baby factory were also arrested during the raid. Confirming the arrest of the suspects, the State Commissioner of Police, Zaki Ahmed told newsmen that the Pastor engaged in child trafficking in the guise of operating a legal business.
Parading the suspects alongside 39 suspected armed robbers, kidnappers and cultists in Port Harcourt, the Police Boss said;
“Men of the Criminal intelligence and Investigation Department in a sting operation on Friday stormed the premises of one Gloria Raphael, who is the General Overseer of Mount Sinai Ministry at Rukpokwu. She is into the business of child trafficking.
“Sixteen pregnant women awaiting delivery and onward sale of the children to the waiting buyers were arrested. One of them by name Chinyere Nweke had labour yesterday (Friday) and was rushed to the police clinic where she gave birth to a baby girl,” Ahmed said.
It was gathered that some of those arrested were below 18 years and pregnant. Punch reported that when asked why she was arrested, Gloria Raphael stated;
“There was a day my sister, Esther Joseph, called me to come and help her; that somebody was sick.
“So, they brought the girl. She brought two other girls to me and they were having discharge. I gave them to a midwife to deliver them. Some of the girls came for prayers; they have husbands.”
Also confirming that the property raided was a baby factory, one of the pregnant women, Sandra Solomon, explained that she was told that she could sell her baby to a church when she discovered that she was pregnant.
According to her, she followed an agent to the church because she had no person to help her through her condition.
“I became pregnant and I did not know what to do. So, a lady told me that they sell babies in that church and I came there. The woman did not tell me how much they sell. I don’t want to sell my baby. As we were sleeping in the church, police came and arrested all of us,” she added
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