The Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Northern Regional Police Command has arrested three people in connection with the theft of a newborn baby from One Heart Hospital in Tamale.
The arrests were made on Sunday, December 21.
The suspects include two nurses, Abubakari Fatima Bintu and Grace Asiedu Mensah, who were on duty at the time of the incident, and a security guard, Abukari Iddi.
The baby was taken after a woman, believed to be posing as a nurse, entered the labour ward and told staff she was taking the newborn to be given an injection.
She reportedly left the ward with the baby and did not return.
The Northern Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Inspector Alhassan Luckman Niendow, said intelligence-led operations are ongoing to locate the missing baby and arrest other suspects linked to the case. He said police are treating the matter with urgency.
Earlier, the baby’s mother, Abdul Mumin Safiyatu, told JoyNews that she had stepped out briefly to use the washroom. When she returned, she could not find her baby, triggering panic at the facility.
An eyewitness also told JoyNews that a woman entered the delivery room, claimed she was taking the baby for vital checks, and later disappeared with the child.
The baby’s father, Bawa Sayibu, said he received a call around 1:15 a.m. informing him that his wife had delivered a baby boy.
He said he later bought medicines needed for the baby before discharge and left the hospital around 10 a.m.
“I was sitting with my colleagues when my sister called me crying and asked me to rush to the hospital,” he said.
“When I arrived, I was told the baby had been stolen.”
Mr Sayibu added that police made arrests after the family reported the incident, including one of his wives who works at the hospital.
Following the incident, residents of Lamashegu besieged the hospital, demanding accountability.
Some residents expressed shock and raised concerns about security arrangements at health facilities, calling for stronger measures to protect patients and their families.
Myjoyonline
