Midwife Arrested Over Missing Baby

A midwife in Ifo Local Government area of Ogun state, identified as Esther Mathew has been arrested by the police for the sudden disappearance of a newborn baby in her clinic.

The police are already investigating whether a dead baby found in the suspect’s facility on Sunday is the infant she allegedly absconded with.

It was earlier gathered that a pregnant woman, whose name is yet to be disclosed, was admitted to the clinic on Saturday in the company of her mother-in-law.

At about 5 pm, the midwife was said to have announced the arrival of the baby and informed the mother-in-law to go get the baby items.

It was later gathered that the mother-in-law left the clinic, but by the time she returns with the father of the new infant, the baby was already missing.

They purportedly asked two nurses on the ground about the whereabouts of the woman and the baby but were said to be prevaricating.

It was gathered that the man raised the alarm and reported the case at the Ifo Police Station.

A woman identified as Abolore Adeyemi, a friend of the family,  wrote about the incident on her Instagram page, she stated that operatives from the division ransacked the clinic, but did not find the baby.

She wrote, “The nurses couldn’t account for the whereabouts of the newborn baby. The husband alerted the community chairman, elders, and youths and they went to the Ifo Police Station. Policemen visited the place of delivery and only found the placenta while one of the rooms was locked.”

Abolore Adeyemi said after calling the midwife’s line severally, she eventually spoke with the family on phone at about 10 pm assuring them about the safety of the baby.

Adeyemi further stated that the search team waited for Matthew till 11.30pm and left the place when she did not show up, adding that the midwife came back the next day.

“We all went back to the hospital and in one of the rooms already searched, a dead baby was found, which the midwife claimed had been in the building since the previous day. She said the baby was dead at birth.

“The locked room was opened and money of different denominations was found. She also has a building construction going on at the back of the clinic. Elders within her community claimed that she came back to the clinic by 1 am and showed them the dead baby. The dead body has been taken to a mortuary for autopsy. The wicked must not go unpunished,” Adeyemi added.

Efforts to speak with Adeyemi and the family for further information proved abortive. A message sent to the poster on Instagram is yet to be replied to as at press time.

Nevertheless, the Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed the arrest, saying that the midwife had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department in Eleweran, Abeokuta, for further investigations.

ASP Oyeyemi said, “In-depth investigations will be carried out on the case. We are going to get to the root of the matter. That was why the Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, directed that the case should be transferred to the SCID in Eleweran, Abeokuta.”