A 38-year-old mother of eleven, Chinyere Chukwu, has been apprehended for attempting to sell two of her sons for N1.8 million in Anambra State.
Chinyere was arrested alongside her 17-year-old daughter, Joy Chukwu, by the Anambra State Women and Social Welfare Commissioner, Honorable Ify Obinabo.
The Commissioner, posing as a buyer after receiving a tip-off about the transaction, successfully carried out the arrest.
During interrogation at the Prof Dora Akunyili Women Development Center in Awka, Chinyere explained that she and her daughter decided to sell off her two sons due to economic hardship.
According to her, she was struggling financially to cater for her eleven children and opted to sell two to provide for the rest.
She said she initially asked for 1 million naira each for the boys but eventually agreed to sell them for a total of 1.8 million naira after bargaining with the Commissioner.
She confessed that her decision was influenced by her neighbor who successfully sold one of her own children, but admitted that it was her first attempt at the business.
Chinyere, originally from Ozubulu but residing in Okija, revealed that she had only two children with her late husband and gave birth to the remaining nine after his passing.
Her eldest daughter revealed that the plan was to use the proceeds to fund her tertiary education.
The Women Affairs boss ordered that the suspect’s remaining children be taken into the state government’s custody for proper care, and demanded the arrest of the neighbor involved. Furthermore, she directed authorities to trace and retrieve the child sold by the neighbor.
