Mother kills Day Old Baby With Hot Water, Dump Remains In Refuge Site In Ughelli

A day-old baby boy was intentionally murdered in cool blood by his mother in Iwhrekpokopo community and his remains dumped with plantain peelings in a dumpsite, Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta state.

The nursing mother, identified as Elohor, a physically challenged, who had had a self-delivery was arrested by the men of the Nigeria Police attached to the ‘B’ division at Agbarha-Otor but was later granted bail.

According to a source in the area, “The cry of the baby attracted neighbors but on getting to her residence, she locked herself and the baby inside her apartment and the door was forced opened.

The source disclosed that Elohoh who is in her mid-20s, resides with her mother and siblings at Iwhrekpokpo and that although her mother was not at home, two of her siblings were in the house with her when she went into labour and eventually gave birth.

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Efemena Obakpo her neighbor who pay a visit after the birth said “She had actually put to birth at home unassisted the previous day and it was the cry of the baby that attracted neighbors who helped her cut off the placenta.”

“It was joyous to hear the cry of the baby the previous day, well-wishers and neighbors had come to check on the new born baby and mother only to discover that the baby was nowhere in sight.

“Upon interrogation, Elohor told them that the baby’s father had taken the child away in the middle of the night when it was discovered that the baby was having difficulty in breathing.” Simon Owho another witness said.

Owho further explained that not comfortable with her story, one of the neighbors decided to interrogate one of her siblings who allegedly admitted that Elohor had forcefully given the baby hot water to drink after which she allegedly tied the nose and mouth of the baby in an attempt to suffocate the child.

“When she noticed that the child was dead she took the corpses and put him in a sack, filled it up with refuse and plantain peelings, then gave it to a mentally challenged man roaming the area to help her discard it in the morning as refuse,” Owho stated.

He said: “Following this revelation, a search was carried out on all the dump sites in the area only to actually discover the remains of the baby in the sack as disclosed by her sibling.”

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When contacted, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Andrew Aniamaka said, “There is a report to that effect at the ‘B’ Division Ughelli and it is subject of investigation.”

“She has not been totally let off the hook as the matter is still under investigation. One of the conditions for her temporal release is that the family should take care of her health and they should be reporting to the police station on a weekly base while investigations are going on.

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