63-yr-old woman arrested for stealing five-day-old baby from hospital

KUMI, UGANDA: Police in Soroti have arrested a 63-year-old woman with a stolen infant of five days.
The baby was stolen from Soroti regional referral hospital maternity ward on Friday afternoon by Joyce Aketch.

Aketch was arrested from Kobwin village in Ngora district, seven hours after stealing the baby from her mother, Salume Asege, 19 who was a pupil in Tubur Primary School in Tubur sub-county, Soroti district.

Alice Grace Epaku, the Principle Nursing officer at Soroti Regional Referral Hospital says the suspect posed as an attendant in the ward. She says that the suspect had been in the hospital premises for three days and was monitoring and scheming for her targets.

Epaku adds that on a fateful day, the mother and her attendant were tricked by the suspect to take the baby for shopping.

According to Epaku, the suspect first took the attendant of the baby for shopping in town but swiftly returned to the hospital to pick the baby up under the pretext of trying on the clothes. She says that the unsuspecting mother in the ward handed the baby without question, only to be shocked when the attendant came back asking for the baby.

Epaku says that the hospital last recorded a similar incident about four years ago, but attributes the recent case to a security lapse in the hospital.

Oscar Gregg Ageca, the East Kyoga Regional Police Spokesman says the suspect has been charged with the offense of child stealing vide SD REF: 50/28/01/2022 at Soroti CPS.

“We condemn the acts of child stealing and all crimes related to children and we shall hold perpetrators to account, redoubling our efforts to ensure that children are protected wherever they are whether at home, in schools or public spaces, but the children and adults are encouraged to speak up when such incidents do occur,” Ageca said in his press statement on Saturday.