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| Olawale Omolaja: I am not a doctor, I am a trado-medical person |
A self-styled doctor,
Olawale Omolaja, has been arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Police
Command for allegedly selling a week-old baby without the mother’s consent. He was arrested with the
couple, Dele and Radiat Onogbile, who took the baby, after paying ₦136,000,
as advance.
The
suspects were nabbed after the couple’s landlady at Mile 12 discovered that the
woman had a new born baby without being pregnant.
The
surprised landlady was said to have notified the Ketu Police Division of the
suspicious presence of a new born baby in the couple’s home.
The Nation report continues:
Upon
interrogation, it was discovered that Omolaja, billed the couple ₦300,000
for the baby, whose mother allegedly kept in his care.
Although
the baby’s mother, Idiat Babatunde, who claimed she was a student at the Offa
Polytechnic in Kwara State, said she gave Omolaja her baby in order to go and
complete her clearance in school, The Nation gathered that she knew about the
sale of her child.
Idiat,
39, alleged that she left the baby in Omolaja’s care because he’s a doctor and
a friend to her husband.
It
was gathered that Idiat collected ₦70,000 from the ₦136,000
before leaving for school.
She
was said to have given the baby up because her supposed husband, Akiola,
abandoned her after impregnating her and relocated to Rivers State.
Unable
to fend for the child a week after it was born, she handed over the baby to
Omolaja, who has been the Onogbiles’ doctor since 2009.
The
Nation gathered that the couple’s marriage was at the brink of collapse as a
result of childlessness, and that they were separated until the baby was handed
over to them on September 14.
But
Idiat denied giving up her baby or collecting any money, stating that she could
not carry the child to school because it would have been difficult for her to
cope.
She
claimed she still had a missing script and had no place of her own, adding that
she always called Omolaja to check on the child.
She
said: “I gave birth in September 5 and on September 13, I gave the baby to Dr.
Omolaja because I needed to go back to school in order to complete my clearance
so that I can go for NYSC with the next batch.
“I
gave him the baby because I was having issues with my husband and we have been
separated. I planned to spend two weeks in school and two weeks in Lagos.
“But
that same week that I went to school, I received a call that I should come and
identify my baby at Ketu police station. I was surprised because I did not know
what my baby could be doing in Ketu.
“I
stay at Ipaja with my cousin and he (Omolaja) stays in Ipaja too. My husband is
a driver and since we had accommodation problem, he has moved to Port Harcourt.
“So,
I called my husband and told him. He said he would come to Lagos since it
concerned his baby.
“So,
I quickly left school and came to Lagos and that was how I knew that he sold my
baby for ₦300,000 and that they were caught because the landlady of the
people who bought the baby suspected something was wrong.”
But
the Onogbiles said they were shocked when the mother of the child surfaces.
Mrs.
Onogbile, 35, said she and her husband repeatedly asked Omolaja about the
mother of the child but he told them not to worry.
“I
have known him for many years now. He is the one treating me. Since I got
married in 2009, I have been having miscarriage and it was causing problem in
my marriage.
“He
used to tell us to adopt but my husband never liked the idea. In fact, I have
even moved out of my husband’s house and was living on my own.
“It
was the baby that brought us together again. He told me and my husband about
the baby and that we should adopt her. We asked where the parents of the baby
are but he said we should not worry about the parents.
“So,
we asked for adoption documents and he said he would bring it. We paid ₦136,000.
I brought half and my husband brought the other half. We agreed for ₦300,000,”
she said.
However,
Omolaja claimed that he did not sell the baby and only wanted the couple to
adopt her.
He
claimed he did not collect the money from them, but asked them to hold it so
that he could take them to Alausa for the processing of relevant ‘adoption’
papers.
Omolaja
said Idiat handed over the baby to him because she could not take care of the
child, adding that he wanted the couple, who had the means, to take care of
her.
He
said: “I did not sell the baby. It was adoption paper I wanted them to go and
do. Idiat left the baby in my care and she was aware of the adoption.
“I
did not collect any money from them. I told them to hold ₦130,000
and follow me to Alausa so that we can do the documents.
“I
am not a doctor, I am a trado-medical person. I don’t have any hospital. We did
everything in my house. I knew the couple (Onogbiles) while we were at Oshodi.
But Idiat and her husband are my family friends.”
Briefing reporters on the
development, the Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni said the suspects –
Omolaja and the couple who bought the baby- would be charged to court after the
holiday.
Doctor Sells Week-Old Baby To Couple For
₦300,000
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|
Onalaja,
Oluwakemi and Dele Photocredits: Olaleye Aluko
|
The
police in Lagos have arrested a trado-medical doctor ─ Olawale Onalaja ─ for
allegedly selling a week-old baby to a couple for ₦300,000
in the Iyana Ipaja area of Lagos.
PUNCH
Metro learnt that the couple, Dele and Oluwakemi Ayangbile, who had also been
arrested by the police, allegedly paid the sum to the native doctor before
taking the baby to their apartment in the Mile 12 area.
PUNCH
Metro learnt that the mother of the baby, 29-year-old Idiat Babatunde, was a
student of a polytechnic in Osun State, and was preparing for her convocation
when she was delivered of the baby on Saturday, September 5.
It
was gathered that after the delivery, Idiat, who had a quarrel with her
husband, Akinola Babatunde, had taken the baby to Onalaja, said to be a family
friend, on September 13, and requested that he kept the child for her, while
she travelled to school.
Our
correspondent learnt that Onalaja, who lived in Ikola Odunsi Street in Iyana
Ipaja, however, invited the Ayangbiles and sold the baby to them for ₦300,000.
It
was learnt that when Idiat returned from school, Onalaja lied that the baby was
in custody of a government-owned orphanage where he would be properly taken
care of.
Our
correspondent gathered that the buyers, the Ayangbiles, took the week-old baby
to their rented apartment. But their suspicious landlord was said to have
reported the matter at the Ketu Police Division after the baby had been with
the couple for three days.
Our
correspondent learnt that the police thereafter arrested the Ayangbiles, and
also picked up Onalaja.
The
wife, Oluwakemi, said she had been barren since 2009 when she got married,
adding that Onalaja, who was a family friend, had earlier advised her to adopt
a child.
She
said, “I have known the traditional doctor since 2013. I got married in 2009
and I used to have miscarriages. It was while looking for treatment that I met
him. In 2014, he advised that I should adopt a baby, but I did not agree.
“Two
Mondays ago, he called me on the telephone and said I should meet him. He told
me that he had a baby at hand to give us, adding that he would obtain all the
necessary papers. I then discussed it with my husband and he said we should go
for the baby since Onalaja was going to get the papers. He did not tell us that
the baby’s mother was not aware of the transaction.
“I
paid him ₦300,000, and brought the baby home. But after three days, the
police came to arrest my husband and I. We have been barren for six years, and
we need a child. We mean no harm to the baby.”
Onalaja,
however, told our correspondent he collected only ₦156,000
from the couple, which was the sum to process papers from the government
ministry in Alausa.
He
said, “The agreement between the mother of the baby and I was that I would take
the baby to an orphanage. The mother agreed to collect the baby back after
three months in government’s custody.
“It
is true that I collected ₦156,000 from Kemi and gave the baby to her. I wanted to take
the baby to Alausa to register in an orphanage. But I was called on the telephone
that the couple was arrested by the police. That was how I was also arrested. I
do not sell babies. The mother is known to me.”
The
mother of the baby, Idiat, said she had a quarrel with her husband, who was
away in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, and she gave the baby to Onalaja, so she
could concentrate on her academics.
She
said, “I had a quarrel with my husband, and so he was not at home when the baby
was born.
“I
gave the baby to Onalaja a week after while I went to school. It was when I
returned that I realized that my baby had been sold. But I am happy to be
reunited with him.”
A
police source, however, told our correspondent that the mother of the baby knew
about the sale of the baby.
The
Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, said the baby had been reunited with the
parents, while the suspects would be charged to court.
The
CP added that the command would not condone any act of criminalities in the
state.
He
said, “The couple, who were the beneficiaries of the baby, was arrested
alongside the self-styled doctor. The police have recovered the baby and
identified the parents.
“Although
the baby has been returned to the mother, he is still under the watch of the
Family Support Unit of the command.
“Investigation is almost concluded,
and the suspects will appear in court soon.”
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