A shocking fraud preying on people desperate to fathom has been uncovered in Nigeria. Called the’cryptic maternity scam’, it exploits cultural and social pressures faced by people unable to have kids, usually convincing them to feel in false babies and delivering recruited children as their own, according to BBC.
The system unveiled
The BBC’s uncovering of the pregnancy scam started with an interaction with a victim, who claimed she carried her baby, for 15 months after seeking unconventional” treatment” at a” clinic”. This impossible timeframe raised concern among condition officials and her husband’s household, who questioned the child’s roots.
This led to a discovery that cybercriminals, posing as doctors or nurses, promise a “miracle fertility care ” to people struggling with infertility. The solutions, costing hundreds of dollars, usually involve shots, cocktails, or ingredients inserted into the system. These substances often cause real changes like inflamed stomachs, convincing ladies they are pregnant.
The patients are warned not to visit conventional specialists, as they’re told no medical exam or test could detect the girl, reportedly growing outside the uterus.
When it ’s time to “deliver, ” women are asked to pay for an expensive and supposedly rare drug to induce labor. The delivery process usually involves sedatives or stimulants, leaving the people with children they believe they have birthed.
Inside the centres
An undercover research by BBC Africa Eye infiltrated one for office in Ihiala, Anambra position, led by a scam known to individuals as “Dr. Ruth”. Operating out of a decrepit resort, “Dr. Ruth ” conducts fake ultrasounds and honors supposed babies with her customers. Initial treatments can cost as much as 350,000 naira ($ 205 ), with delivery drugs priced at up to 2 million naira ($ 1,180 ).
The Trafficking network
Regulators have linked the fraud to baby smuggling networks. Children are sourced from susceptible people, generally young and expectant, who are coerced or tricked into giving up their kids. In one attack on a hospital in Anambra, some female people, some as young as 17, were found being held against their will. These recruited children are subsequently presented to innocent girls as the result of their “pregnancy. ”
Government crack down
Efforts are underway to locked down these activities. Commissioner Ify Obinabo, leading the assault in Anambra status, has been part of the functions of rescuing subjects and exposing the scam. However, she warns that unless cultural attitudes toward sterility and implementation change, for scams will endure.
