Chioma is certain that the baby boy she is holding, named Hope, is her son. After eight years of failed attempts to conceive, she sees him as her miracle child.
“I’m the owner of my baby,” she says, with confidence.
Sitting alongside her husband, Ike, in the office of a Nigerian state official, Chioma faces an intense hour-long interrogation. The commissioner for women’s affairs in Anambra state, Ify Obinabo, is known for handling family disputes, but this case is unlike any she’s dealt with before.
Five members of Ike’s family, present in the room, do not believe that Hope is the couple’s biological child, as Chioma and Ike claim. They are skeptical, especially of Chioma’s unusual assertion that she carried the child for 15 months. Both the commissioner and Ike’s relatives are shocked by the absurdity of the claim.
Chioma says she faced intense pressure from Ike’s family to have a child, with some even suggesting that he marry another woman. In her desperation, Chioma turned to a so-called “clinic” offering an unorthodox treatment. This disturbing scam preys on women desperate for motherhood, involving the trafficking of babies.
The BBC gained permission from local authorities to observe the commissioner’s discussion with Chioma, as part of an investigation into the deceptive “cryptic pregnancy” scam. To protect those involved, we have changed the names of Chioma, Ike, and others mentioned in this article.
The Scam Preying on Vulnerable Women
Nigeria, with one of the highest birth rates globally, puts significant social pressure on women to conceive. Many face ostracization or abuse if they cannot have children. Faced with these societal expectations, some women go to extreme lengths to achieve their dream of motherhood.
For over a year, BBC Africa Eye has been investigating the so-called “cryptic pregnancy” scam. Scammers, posing as medical professionals, convince women they can offer a “miracle fertility treatment” that guarantees pregnancy. The initial treatment, often costing hundreds of dollars, involves injections, drinks, or substances inserted into the vagina.
While no one knows for certain what these substances contain, some women report bodily changes, such as swollen stomachs, which lead them to believe they are pregnant. Women are warned not to seek traditional medical advice, as no scan or pregnancy test will show evidence of the baby. Scammers claim that the baby is growing outside the womb.
When it’s time to “deliver,” women are told they must take a rare and expensive drug to induce labor. This drug, costing thousands, is said to be the only way to prevent the pregnancy from extending indefinitely. Delivery details vary, but all accounts are unsettling. Some women are sedated and wake up with marks resembling a Caesarean incision, while others are injected with substances that induce hallucinations, making them believe they gave birth.
Chioma shares with the commissioner that when her “delivery” time came, she was injected in the waist and instructed to push. She doesn’t fully explain how she ended up with Hope but describes the experience as “painful.”
Infiltrating the Scam
Our team infiltrated one of these covert “clinics,” posing as a couple desperate for a child. The clinic, run by a woman known as “Dr Ruth,” is based in a rundown hotel in Ihiala, Anambra state. On the second Saturday of every month, dozens of women gather in the hotel corridors, some visibly pregnant.
When it’s our undercover reporter’s turn, “Dr Ruth” promises that her treatment will work. She offers an injection to select the baby’s sex—a medical impossibility—and, when the reporter refuses, gives her a packet of crushed pills and instructions for intercourse. The cost for this initial treatment is 350,000 naira ($205; £165).
Four weeks later, the reporter returns to “Dr Ruth,” who performs an ultrasound-like scan and congratulates her on being pregnant. Despite the lack of scientific evidence, she claims the couple will need to pay for an expensive drug to deliver the baby, warning that the pregnancy could last beyond nine months without it.
The Network of Deception
While “cryptic pregnancy” is a real medical phenomenon, where some women do not realize they are pregnant until late in the process, the scam relies on widespread misinformation, especially on social media. On Facebook, many women share stories of prolonged pregnancies and miraculous treatments, hailing them as divine interventions. Some posts even use religious language to promote the scam, convincing others to believe in its legitimacy.
These groups are not limited to Nigeria. Women from South Africa, the Caribbean, and the US are also involved. The scammers sometimes manage these groups, reaching out to women expressing interest in the treatment and inviting them to more secure communication channels, like WhatsApp, where the process is explained in detail.
Vulnerable Women and Baby Trafficking
Authorities believe that the scammers rely on vulnerable women—many young and pregnant—who are desperate for help. In Nigeria, abortion is illegal, leaving women with few options. The scam involves obtaining newborns to sell to clients.
In February 2024, the Anambra state health ministry raided the facility where Chioma “gave birth” to Hope. The raid uncovered two buildings: one filled with medical equipment, and another where several pregnant women were being held against their will. Some women, as young as 17, reported being tricked into coming to the facility, unaware their babies would be sold.
One woman, “Uju” (not her real name), said she was offered 800,000 naira ($470; £380) for her baby. Asked if she regretted her decision to sell her child, she said, “I’m still confused.”
Commissioner Obinabo, who has been working to dismantle these scams in Anambra, says the traffickers exploit vulnerable women to supply babies. After a tense session, the commissioner considers removing Hope from Chioma’s care. However, Chioma pleads her case, and Obinabo eventually agrees to allow the couple to keep the child, unless biological parents come forward to claim him.
A Call for Change
Experts warn that unless attitudes toward infertility, reproductive rights, and adoption shift, these scams will continue to thrive. The exploitation of vulnerable women and the trafficking of babies will persist unless legal and social frameworks are strengthened.
This investigation sheds light on a growing and disturbing problem, showing how scammers prey on desperation, leaving a trail of suffering and confusion for those caught in their web.
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