Sixteen pregnant ladies and eight children were rescued when police operatives busted a ‘baby factory’ in Aba, the commercial city of Abia State.
The raid, according to the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Moureen Chinaka, occurred on Thursday night.
According to police, the raid followed credible information about the unpatriotic activities going on at the ‘baby factory’.
Police said the owner of the baby factory who was among the suspects was also found pregnant.
Police said: “Yesterday night, we decided to visit the place, a four-story building with 10 flats and another adjacent building in the same compound.
“We were able to capture 16 of them, all pregnant. One of the facilitators, Onyinyechi, was also pregnant and another, Ekpene (male) who lives in the compound were also arrested and eight children were recovered.”
Police further said that a manhunt had been declared for the fleeing members of the operators of the baby factory.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs Ngozi Felix, has commended the police for the exploit.
The Commissioner who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Ogechi Oguama, expressed delight that some misled girls had been rescued.
She said: “Today, we are celebrating the International Women’s Day, we are receiving back women ‘social mothers’ on their path to destruction.”
The Commissioner said that the Ministry was collaborating with the Office of the wife of the Governor to receive the rescued women.
She promised to keep them in “good custody while the investigation is still on”.