The Ondo State Police Command has dismantled an alleged baby factory operating in Ore, Odigbo Local Government Area, and arrested the suspected operator, identified as Ada Clement.
According to the command’s spokesperson, Mr. Olayinka Ayanlade, officers rescued five pregnant underage girls from the illegal facility. Investigations revealed that the suspect and her accomplices were allegedly selling newborns for between ₦400,000 and ₦600,000, depending on the gender of the child.
In a statement released on Sunday, Ayanlade said the case was first reported on October 21, 2025, after a 17-year-old girl, identified as Vivian Peter from Akwa Ibom State, escaped from the premises and alerted the police.
Vivian reportedly told officers that she had been deceived with a promise of employment in Ore but was instead taken to what she later discovered was a baby factory. She said several other pregnant girls were being held there and forced to give birth so their babies could be sold.
According to the police, Vivian managed to flee when the suspect sent her to another hospital for a medical scan. She sought refuge at the Ore Police Division, prompting an immediate raid on the facility by detectives from the division and the command’s Gender-Based Violence Unit.
“The raid led to the rescue of five pregnant girls and a baby boy,” Ayanlade confirmed. “One of the victims had already delivered and is receiving post-natal care at the General Hospital in Ore. The others are currently under police protection.”
Preliminary findings showed that the babies were sold for ₦400,000 or more for female infants and ₦600,000 or more for male infants. The suspect and her collaborators have reportedly confessed to running the operation for profit.
The Commissioner of Police, Mr. Adebowale Lawal, has ordered a full-scale investigation to uncover and arrest all remaining members of the syndicate. Police operatives are currently tracking down others believed to have fled the area.
Ayanlade assured that those found guilty would face prosecution under the state’s anti-trafficking and child-rights laws.
