The police in Benue state have arrested a woman identified as Sughshater Ushahemba from Mbadyur council ward in Logo Local Government Area of the state for allegedly poisoning her 11-month-old baby to death.
Confirming the incident to newsmen, the Information Officer, Logo LGA, Paul Pevikyaa, said the woman had earlier claimed that her baby took ill around 12:31am and died after two hours.
“When the woman was interviewed, she said when they were asleep, around 12.31am, the baby started having high fever and that the body was so hot that she gave up within two hours. She said that the mistake she made was at day break, she failed to inform her neighbors of what happened in the night because there is a strong belief that when you have neighbors and when you are having difficulties at night, at least you can call your neighbors to help you and they can be your witness. But she never did that.”
The information officer, however, said that the woman later confessed to killing her baby because she was abandoned by the man who impregnated her.
“So when day broke, she now attempted burying the baby. The baby was 11 months old,” he said.
Pevikyaa added that the woman said she was impregnated by her boyfriend, and after she gave birth to a baby girl, the boy abandoned her with the child.
“She said she had been suffering with the child, and that was why she poisoned the baby by giving her a chemical that is used to spray grasses,” Pevikyaa said
Confirming the incident to newsmen, the Public Relations Officer, Benue State Command, SP, Catherine Anene, said the suspect is in police custody.