Another baby theft in West Point

Baby theft in hospitals, clinics and sometimes homes in and around Monrovia is becoming a common practice with unsuspecting individuals, particularly females escaping with newly born babies, leaving young couples in distress.

A latest victim of the crime is a young mother, Ms. Marthlyn Miller, whose infant was allegedly stolen by an unknown female Tuesday at the Star of the Sea Hospital in the township of West Point, a densely populated slum community.

According to community residents, Marthlyn gave birth on Saturday, July 13, 2014, but due to profuse bleeding, nurses allegedly abandoned her for fear of coming in contact with the Ebola Virus Disease. However, a strange lady, who had gone at the same hospital, prepared hot water for the baby mother to shower and provided bleach to clean the delivery room.

Narrating further, Marthlyn herself said that the girl was very nice to her and she (Marthlyn) could not believe that the suspect had a hidden intention to steal her baby. She the suspect was always in the hospital room with the nurses. Timothy Koffa, father of the stolen baby said, the unknown female was always at the hospital, even after visiting hours.

Timothy narrated that the suspect told him to replace the cholera she had used to clean the baby mother. According to him, he brought food for the baby mother, but she did not eat the beans soup on grounds that her stomach was seriously paining her.

He said while they were at the hospital, the alleged baby thief took his baby in her hand and stood at the door, but a nurse advised that the infant should be allowed to rest as it was a too young. Timothy said he visited the hospital too often and the suspect complained, but he didn’t take it to be anything.

Marthlyn told The NewDawn that the suspect gave her money to buy tea and drink since she refused the meal her husband took at the hospital. She added that while going to buy the tea, she saw her baby pa returned and asked where she was going.

She said Timothy then took the money from her and went to get the tea instead and she accompanied him, but on their way to the hospital, a laboratory technician alarmed that someone has taken their baby.

“Baby ma and baby pa, where are the both of you coming from; I saw one girl with your baby, but I sent her back inside”, the laboratory technician, who was only identified as Teenese, was quoted as saying.

Timothy said he rushed into the hospital, but his baby was nowhere to be found.  He said a nurse at the hospital hinted that the baby mother may have connived with the suspect to take the baby away, but Marthlyn denied.

Meanwhile, the father of the stolen baby, Timothy Koffa has reported the incident to the police. Hospital staff on duty during the incident has been invited by the police for interrogation.