By NewsBits
A trader at Oye Emene, Enugu, Mr. Chinwuba Nomeh has accused a maternity home at Ugwuomu Nike, Chukwubikem Maternity Home, of killing his pregnant wife and baby.
Nomeh, a father of four kids, bemoaned the fact that he took his pregnant wife, Mrs. Faith Nomeh to the maternity home to deliver her baby but ended up losing mother and baby in mysterious circumstances. He recalled that in April 8, 2023, his wife was in labour and he took her to Nurse Ijeoma Raphael at the Chukwubikem Maternity Home, who promised to deliver the baby but said they should first go for ultrasound.
However, as they were preparing to go for ultrasound, his sister, Barr. Chika Nnamani told him to take his wife to a hospital, but the Nurse Ijeoma insisted that she was capable of delivering the baby and money was transferred to her to give her injection. He said that with the assurances given, he left to look after the rest of his children only to be called back by the nurse few hours later informing him that the case was beyond her.
Narrating his ordeal, Nnamani said: “around 1pm, the nurse called me and said that the case was beyond her. When I arrived the Maternity, I could not see the nurse who had already operated on my wife and brought out the baby without informing me. She locked my wife inside the room, and I went home to buy recharge card and started making calls to my people to know what has happened.
“At about 3 pm, the Nurse called me and said that she was back and that she came with a doctor. When I came back there, I saw where they kept the new-born baby but when I looked intently at the baby, it looked as if it was not breathing and when the nurse saw how I was looking at the baby, she walked me out. I told her that new borns normally cry but this one was not crying, and she told me to take heart that the baby was dead.
“It was then I realised that my wife was dead, and I cried out but she stopped me and said that I should not raise my voice and asked me to come and hold my wife’s hand so that they would give her drip. It was then I saw that the doctor, Dr. Nwoke was carrying a polythene bag containing the placenta and my wife’s womb. When I questioned him, he said what he is carrying blood which he would take to the lab whereas they had already operated on my wife and her stomach was open.
“The doctor asked me to bring money to buy blood for the operation when the nurse had already operated my wife. I wanted to find out what he was exactly carrying in the polythene bag, but the nurse blocked me, and he zoomed off in his car.
“About an hour later, the doctor came back and told me to take heart that my wife was dead, but I asked him how that could be when she was still breathing heavily. I told him to take us to a hospital, but he said that he did not have enough fuel in his car but when I started shouting that they have killed my wife, he bolted with the same car he said had no fuel,” he narrated tearfully.
Nomeh said that he later took his wife to the Annunciation Hospital mortuary where it was discovered that she had no placenta in her womb through an autopsy. He said that he later reported the case to Emene Police Station before the matter was later transferred to the state police headquarters, which later took the case to court.
His lamented that court has granted the nurse bail and that the doctor is nowhere to be seen, pointing out that the matter was adjourned till July 4th at the Enugu State High Court, Independence Layout, Enugu. Further narrating his ordeal, Nomeh said that his people went to a spiritualist who told them that the “nurse did business with my wife’s placenta and the baby.”
His greatest worry is that for one week before the case was transferred to the CID, police headquarters, Dr. Nwoke refused to come to the station and refused to answer his calls. Contacted on phone to comment on the development, the police spokesman, Daniel Ndukwe, simply said that “the matter is before the court.”
At the time of filing the report, all efforts to get Nurse Ijeoma comment on the incident proved abortive because neither Nomeh nor his sister, Barr. Chika Nnamani could tell her phone number.
