A 20-year-old lady, Nwaedoka Chidimma, from the Izzi community in Ebonyi State, has allegedly thrown her newborn into a pit toilet in the Otuocha community, the Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State, where she works.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the incident happened on Sunday while the baby was rescued late on Tuesday after some residents heard him crying from the pit toilet.
A resident, who gave her name as Esther, said the culprit, who was pregnant at the time, secured a farm job in the community and while on the farm, went to use the toilet after which she came back dripping with blood.
According to Esther, a farmer, the suspect had requested she stay in her (Esther’s) residence for a few days to enable her to carry out the farming job she secured in the area.
She said, “Chidimma is my friend, she begged me to stay at my place for a few days because of a farming job she got. She was working on the farm when she suddenly started acting funny after she complained of stomach upset and went to the pit toilet to ease herself.
“After spending time in the toilet, she came out with drops of blood. I thought she had a stillbirth and I quickly invited a nurse who after examining her, disclosed that the baby was gone.
“I encouraged her to travel back home to her parents and notify them of the development because I thought she had a stillbirth.
“It was on Tuesday when we started hearing a baby’s cry that we quickly used a ladder to climb down the pit and rescued the newborn and immediately alerted security agencies and the Ministry of Women and Social Welfare.”
The state Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Ify Obinabo, who reacted to the development, quickly intervened by taking the newborn to the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Teaching Hospital, Amaku Awka for treatment and the culprit was subsequently arrested.
Obinabo disclosed that the baby is stable and currently receiving treatment at the hospital while confirming the arrest of the suspect.
She decried the high rate at which young girls commit crimes, stating that the young mother won’t go unpunished.
She further noted that the state governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo has zero tolerance for such inhumane and dastardly acts.
