Warri Lawyer, Wife Arrested Over Sale of Baby Declared Dead at Birth

Delta State Police rescue child after mother discovers newborn allegedly alive three years after being told she died during delivery

A Warri lawyer, Barrister Solomon Igbiaye, and his wife, Abigail Igbiaye, have been arrested by the Delta State Police Command over the alleged sale of a newborn baby three years after the child’s mother was reportedly told that she had died. The couple were arrested and taken to the Ekpan Police Station on Wednesday after the mother lodged a complaint upon discovering that the child she was told had died in 2023 was allegedly still alive. The couple were allegedly working with a woman identified as Mary, also known as Bridget, in the suspected baby-selling scheme.

According to a source familiar with the case, the mother became pregnant in 2023 after returning to her village in Jos, Plateau State, but was allegedly abandoned by the man who fathered the pregnancy. The source said a woman from her village noticed her condition and offered to take her to Warri, where she was allegedly received by Igbiaye’s wife, who assured her that she would be cared for until she delivered the baby. The source noted that the mother was allegedly unaware of any plan involving her unborn child. According to the account, the woman had previously lived in Sapele before returning to her village in Jos. She later became pregnant after entering into a relationship with a man who allegedly denied responsibility after she informed him of the pregnancy. The source said the man subsequently left her as the pregnancy progressed. “After hearing her story, the woman promised to take her to Warri for help. Upon arriving in Warri, she was approached by the lawyer’s wife, who assured her that she would be taken care of until she gave birth. Unknown to her, there were ulterior motives at play,” the source said.

Days before her delivery, the mother was reportedly taken to Vicar Clinic, where labour was allegedly induced. According to the source, after her water broke, she was taken into the operating room for a Caesarean section and delivered a baby girl. A nurse reportedly showed her the newborn shortly after the delivery, but she allegedly never saw the child again. The source said Bridget later informed the mother that the baby had died. The mother reportedly became suspicious and demanded to be taken to the place where her child had allegedly been buried, but Bridget allegedly refused.

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Four days after the delivery, the mother was reportedly taken in a vehicle by Igbiaye’s wife and Bridget and abandoned in a dilapidated building in the Shaguolo area of Ekpan. Her condition subsequently deteriorated as her Caesarean-section wounds became infected, while she allegedly had no money or means of caring for herself. She reportedly survived by begging for food before eventually securing transportation back to Jos in a truck. The source alleged that Igbiaye’s wife paid Bridget N166,000 in connection with the arrangement, while the mother was allegedly not given any money. The source further alleged that a housemaid identified as Kindness, who reportedly worked at the lawyer’s residence and was from the same village as the mother, later told her that the baby had been brought to the lawyer’s home. Kindness allegedly sent her a photograph of the baby and told her that the child strongly resembled her.

The alleged revelation prompted the mother to question the circumstances surrounding the reported death of her daughter. According to the source, the photograph and information provided by Kindness raised suspicions that the child may not have died as she had been told, but could have been unlawfully transferred or sold. The lawyer, his wife and Bridget have been accused of conspiring in the alleged transaction. However, the circumstances surrounding the child’s birth, disappearance and subsequent whereabouts remain subject to police investigation. The suspects were subsequently taken to the Effurun Area Command for further investigation. The source told THE WHISTLER on Thursday that the baby had been rescued. “The child is with the police. Police rescued the baby this afternoon (Wednesday) upon the arrest of the duo,” the source said. The police are expected to establish what happened to the baby following the Caesarean delivery and determine whether anyone was involved in an alleged attempt to sell or unlawfully transfer the child.

When contacted, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, Bright Edafe, did not respond to messages seeking confirmation of the arrests and rescue of the child. The Delta State Police Command has previously demonstrated commitment to tackling child trafficking and related crimes in the state. In December 2025, the command arrested a woman for allegedly faking the abduction of her two-month-old baby and selling the child for N1.5 million to a pastor in Effurun, Uvwie Local Government Area. The woman had alleged that gunmen forcefully took her baby from her while she was in a tricycle and pushed her out. However, investigations revealed that the mother had staged the abduction and sold the child to the cleric.

The case bears similarities to other reported incidents of babies being declared dead at birth only to be discovered alive later. In June 2026, the Nigeria Police Force uncovered an alleged child trafficking operation at a private medical facility in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, leading to the arrest of several suspects, including the hospital’s Chief Medical Director. Investigators alleged that live babies delivered at the hospital were taken away and trafficked, while some mothers were falsely informed that their newborns had died during childbirth. The investigation took a more disturbing turn following the discovery of a dead infant allegedly recovered from the doctor’s office, which was reportedly embalmed for preservation. Investigators alleged that the deceased infant was sometimes presented to mothers as evidence that their babies had died. In 2014, police in Delta State arrested a couple accused of buying and selling children, including a day-old girl. The couple, a midwife and her husband, were accused of running a baby-buying scheme out of a medical store they operated in Warri. The scheme was allegedly discovered when a man desperate for cash to buy a tricycle agreed to sell his newborn child to the couple without telling his wife. When the mother awoke and asked to see her child, her husband told her the baby had died and already been buried.

The police have advised expectant mothers to ensure a trusted relative is present during delivery and urged hospitals to maintain adequate security measures in maternity wards to prevent the theft of newborns.

Warri Lawyer, Wife Arrested Over Sale of Baby Declared Dead at Birth

Police Arrest Woman Over Fake OPay Shutdown Notice

The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) has arrested a 27-year-old woman, Hafsat Abubakar, over the alleged creation and circulation of a fake document claiming that fintech company OPay Nigeria Limited was shutting down its operations.

The arrest followed an investigation launched after OPay Digital Services Limited petitioned the police over the fraudulent document, which circulated widely on social media and caused concerns among some customers.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Anietie Iniedu, disclosed the development during a press briefing at the NPF-NCCC in Abuja on Wednesday.

Iniedu said the police received a formal petition from OPay on August 31, 2026, through the office of the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Abuja.

According to him, the company requested an urgent investigation to identify, trace and apprehend those responsible for creating and circulating what it described as a fraudulent document falsely presented as an official communication from OPay.

Following the petition, the National Cybercrime Centre deployed digital forensic tools to analyse the document and establish its source.

The police said the forensic investigation traced the material to a post on an X account identified as @haifah_er_abba, which was allegedly registered and operated by Abubakar.

Police operatives subsequently arrested Abubakar on September 4, 2026.

The suspect was identified as a 27-year-old graduate of Library and Information Science from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

The investigation centres on a fabricated document titled “Official Note”, which falsely claimed that OPay would stop processing transactions and account-related services indefinitely from September 1, 2026.

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The fake notice reportedly urged customers to withdraw or transfer their funds ahead of the purported shutdown, potentially creating panic among users of the digital financial services platform.

OPay moved quickly to dismiss the claim, assuring customers that the company had no plan to shut down its operations.

The fintech company described the purported shutdown notice as completely false and urged customers to disregard the information, stressing that its services remained fully operational.

OPay also highlighted several inconsistencies in the document as evidence that it was not an authentic company communication.

Among the discrepancies were the use of an outdated OPay logo, a misspelling of the company’s name and a layout that differed from the format used in its official communications.

The company subsequently escalated the matter to security agencies, confirming that it was working with the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force to identify the source of the false information and those involved in its circulation.

OPay’s Chief Legal Counsel, Akinfolabi Rokosu, had also warned that individuals who deliberately disseminated false information about the company could face legal consequences.

The company said the false publication had the potential to cause unnecessary alarm among customers and negatively affect its business and reputation.

The police investigation has now led to the arrest of Abubakar, with the NPF-NCCC saying the case highlights the growing threat posed by digitally fabricated information.

The Force said false information involving financial institutions and fintech companies could have serious consequences, including public panic, financial disruption and reputational damage.

The police therefore urged Nigerians to exercise caution before sharing information obtained from social media, particularly claims concerning banks, fintech companies, government agencies and other critical institutions.

The NPF-NCCC advised members of the public to verify sensitive information through official channels before acting on or reposting it online.

The police said the investigation was still ongoing and assured that anyone found culpable would face prosecution after the conclusion of the investigation.

The development comes after OPay continued its operations beyond the September 1 date mentioned in the fake notice, further confirming that the purported OPay shutdown was not genuine.

Customers have consequently been advised to rely on OPay’s verified communication channels for information concerning its services and operations.

Police Arrest Woman Over Fake OPay Shutdown Notice