By Ngozi Uwujare
Hell hath no fury than a girl scorned. That was the situation in a town in Anambra State recently.
The Anambra State Police Command’s operatives attached to Uli Division recently arrested a 14-year-old girl, Mmesoma Anyawere for attempting to murder a one-month old baby, Chisindi Nwankwo. The girl had attempted to force the baby to drink a popular chemical substance before neighbours rescued the baby.
Her reason for this dastardly act, according to her, was that the father of the baby had been having a sexual relationship with her which she had thought would lead to marriage. She said the man proposed to her but later failed to marry her. The incident happened at Ubahudara Uli in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State. Anambra State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Chris Owolabi told Saturday Sun that the mother of the baby had handed over her one-month old baby to Mmesoma, her neighbour while the mum dashed to the market. But an angry Mmesoma, who thought the baby’s father would marry her, wanted to force the baby to drink a poisonous substance. The police commissioner said it was when the neighbours heard the cry of the baby, that they came around and discovered the suspect’s plan. They thereafter took the baby from her and reported the case at Uli Police Station.
“The suspect was picked up immediately and the baby was rushed to the General Hospital in Awka where the baby received medical treatment,” he explained. The suspect later told the police that the father of the baby, Chinedu Nwankwo had promised to marry her but failed to, which prompted her attempt to murder his baby. He said the case was transferred from Uli Police Division to Area Command in Ihiala. The suspect, Mmesoma told Saturday Sun “I wanted to kill the baby. The father, Chinedu Nwankwo was having an affair with me and promised me heaven and earth. He said he would marry me. But suddenly, he went and married another woman. We are neighbours and he has been having sex with me. He used and dumped me and he went to marry another woman.
“I have been waiting for an opportunity to kill the baby. The wife of Nwankwo handed over her baby to me. I have a chemical substance and I wanted to force the baby to drink it. But her cries alerted neighbours who took her from me after discovering my intentions. The case was reported at the Uli Police Station and a policeman came and arrested me. I don’t regret what I have done. I wanted to revenge ” she confessed.
The father of the baby, Chinedu Nwankwo, also spoke with Saturday Sun. He said: “It is true that I am going out with Mmesoma Anyawere and I promised to marry her but I didn’t marry her and I didn’t know she wanted to kill my baby. We are neighbours. The police from the Area Command arrested me for child abuse. They said I abused Anyawere sexually at her tender age”, he said.
The mother of the baby, Mrs. Nwankwo said: “I was shocked when I heard that Anyawere wanted to kill my baby. I went to the market and handed over my baby to her to take care of her, being my neighbour. I never thought she had such a plan in her mind. I didn’t believe that my husband was dating her and promised to marry her. It was when my husband refused to marry her that she wanted to kill my one month old baby. It is only God that will save us from this wicked world”, she said.
CP Owolabi said that the suspect, Mmesoma Anyawere and Chinedu Nwankwo, who was arrested for child abuse, would soon be charged to court after the investigation is concluded.