PUNCH
I.have boys as children; I only wanted to have a girl-child,” was the excuse given by Mrs Tina Raphael, a 60-year-old woman from Anambra State who was arrested by the Gombe State Police Command over her involvement in a case of suspected child trafficking.
In an interview with Saturday PUNCH, Raphael said she adopted the baby from a suspected trafficker she identified as Khadijah for N400,000, adding that she was introduced to the ailing child who was dying from malnutrition.
“I had been wanting to adopt a baby girl since January 1, 2024, and was told that one was available by Khadijah. The baby is one year old and she was not walking and was sick, so I asked her (Khadijah) to bring the baby to me to see what I could do to help her.
After looking at the baby, I noticed that she was suffering from malnutrition and needed medical assistance; that’s why I asked her to bring the child after which I asked her how I could get legal papers for the custody of the baby since she works with social welfare (in the Ministry of Women Affairs) because she told me she works there.”
Narrating further, the 60-year-old woman disclosed that she was charged an amount for the documentation of the baby’s ownership and denied buying the baby
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