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A 26-year-old bricklayer, Kenneth Ofoke, was arrested in Benin, Edo State, for allegedly selling his six-week-old twin babies for half a million naira.
The suspect, who hails from Eboyi State, was said to have sold the infants in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Ofoke was among suspects paraded by the Edo State Commissioner of Police, Mohammed DanMallam, for alleged involvement in various crimes.
The police said the suspect had sold four babies before he was arrested, adding that he sold the twin babies for N500,000, and the other two for N30,000 and N50,000, respectively.
In an interview with journalists, Ofoke claimed that the twins were his children, adding that the incident happened in August 2018.
He claimed that he sold the twins “due to financial constraints and the ill health of the children and their mother.”
The suspect added that he and the mother of the babies agreed to take them to where they would be well taken care of.
“My wife gave birth to twins; she and the twins fell ill. So, I called my aunt, who said I should bring them to Port Harcourt. She said she would help me out so that I could take care of their mother.
“When we got to Port Harcourt, my aunt asked us if we were really husband and wife and if the twins were our children and we said yes.
“She then told us that the children needed better care to save their lives and that of their mother.
“I told her to save the children so that I could go and take care of my wife. I also told her that we would be coming to see them from time to time.
“She then told us that the children would be taken to an orphanage. She called the people who gave me N500,000 to take care of my wife in exchange for the babies,” he said.
When asked if he married the woman, he said, “The woman brought the children to me, saying I am their father and that I impregnated her while we were dating.”
The Edo CP, DanMallam, said the suspects would be charged to court at the conclusion of investigation.