NSCDC Rescues 17 Pregnant Women From Badagry Baby Factory in Midnight Raid

The Midnight Raid

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps has rescued 28 people, including 17 pregnant women, from a suspected baby factory in Badagry, Lagos State. The operation, carried out around midnight following three weeks of intelligence gathering, also led to the arrest of two suspects.

Lagos State NSCDC Commandant Adedotun Keshinro disclosed the details while briefing journalists. The 28 victims range in age from 18 to 35 and include 10 children alongside the 17 pregnant women. The facility was being used to house pregnant women and facilitate the sale of their babies, according to the NSCDC.

A Recurring Problem

Baby factories are not new in Nigeria. They have been documented across Lagos, Abia, Imo, and other states for over a decade. The pattern is usually the same: vulnerable women, often young and unemployed, are lured with promises of shelter and financial support during their pregnancies, then pressured to surrender their newborns for sale. Some are told the babies will go to adoptive families. Others are simply paid a flat fee and sent away.

The business thrives because demand exists. Couples unable to conceive, people seeking children for rituals, and international adoption networks all create a market. Law enforcement periodically raids these facilities, rescues the women, and arrests a handful of operators. Then the cycle repeats somewhere else.

What Happens Next

The NSCDC says investigations are ongoing and the two suspects are in custody. The rescued women and children are receiving medical attention and counselling. Whether this leads to prosecutions that actually stick is another matter. Previous cases have often collapsed in court due to witness intimidation, poor evidence handling, or victims refusing to testify.

The Badagry raid is a reminder that the trade continues even when it drops out of the headlines. The structural drivers, poverty, weak birth registration, and inconsistent enforcement, have not changed. Until they do, the next raid is only a matter of time.

Sources: Corruption Radar, Eyes of Lagos, PM News