Wife poisons rival’s baby boy 2 hours after delivery

EXACTLY a week after the publication of the story of the teenager who severed the genitals of her rival’s baby out of jealousy, another housewife, Bilkisu Adamu Isah, has been arrested and is being investigated at the Homicide section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department of the Niger State Police Command, as a result of an accusation that she attempted to kill a two-hour-old baby boy belonging to her rival in Kopa village, Bosso Local Government Area of the State.

She reportedly poured a locally-made insecticide popularly called ‘otapiapia’ into the baby’s mouth when he was put in her charge so that the new mother could take her bath and refresh after the painful experience of labour and child delivery.

The 25-year-old Bilkisu, said to be the second wife of the father of the baby, was said to have committed the offence on June 19, at about 7:00a.m.

Crime Reports gathered that the baby was delivered at about 5:00a.m by the senior wife, one Suwebatu Kohageuto.

According to a police source, shortly after the suspect observed that her rival had commenced washing herself inside a bathroom within the house, she went into her own room, brought out a bottle of ‘Otapiapia’ and poured part of the content into the  baby’s mouth. The baby was said to have made cries of pain.

Surprisingly, the suspect was the one that raised the alarm which attracted other members of the family, including the mother of the child, who all raced to the scene. Unknown to others, Bilkisu became uncomfortable when she noticed the way the two-hour-old boy was foaming in the mouth.

Shocked by the occurrence, the baby’s grandfather, one Alhaji Mohammed Audu, was reportedly invited; and on his arrival, he moved close to the baby. He was the one who was said to have perceived the odour of the insecticide which he revealed to the bewildered family members, saying that he suspected that the boy was poisoned.

Crime Reports further learnt that as the family made moves to save the baby’s life by rushing him to the hospital for medical treatment, the suspect escaped from the scene and ran to her father’s house in a nearby village, Gbedahan, in same Bosso Local Government Area of the state.

On arrival at her family house, she reportedly confessed to her father that she had poisoned her newly-born stepson with a view to killing him.

Crime Reports learnt that the baby had since been on admission at the General Hospital, Minna, after the poisonous substance was flushed out of his stomach by a team of medical personnel.

When people from her husband’s family visited the suspect in her village, Crime Reports learnt that she confessed that she was responsible for poisoning the little boy, an action she claimed to have taken because of her inability to give birth to a baby boy for her husband.

The mother of two female children was thereafter handed over to the police and had reportedly confessed to the crime when interrogated.

In an interview with Crime Reports on Thursday, Bilkisu confirmed that she was responsible for the criminal act, adding that she was in good terms with her husband and her rival. She blamed her act on the devil and said she did not know what came over her on the fateful day.

Confirming the arrest of the suspect, the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Bala Elkana, said that she would soon be arraigned in court for criminal trespassing and attempted murder.