TWO Ndola mothers claim that unidentified individuals switched their babies at the Ndola Teaching Hospital (NTH), leaving them in a traumatized state.
In this case, both mothers contend that the larger kid, weighing 4.4 kilograms, is theirs and have rejected the smaller baby, weighing 3.4 kilograms.
In order to identify which baby belonged to whom, hospital officials conducted a Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) test in conjunction with the police.
According to Copperbelt Officers Commanding Officer Peacewell Mweemba, police were alerted to a possible case of child swapping on Friday the 13th of last week.
According to Mr. Mweemba, the father of one of the newborns, Danny Kiprios, 35, alleged that the baby boy his wife Majory Kiprios, 25, gave birth to had been switched by unidentified people.
“Brief facts are that on January 13th, last week at about 10:00 hours, the wife to the complainant gave birth to a baby boy at the above mentioned Hospital through ceaserian section. She was shown the baby boy who weighed 4.4kg. Thereafter it was taken to the nursery. The newly born baby was given a tag placed on the baby’s hand bearing its mother’s details. On January 14th, the next day after she recovered, she was taken to Post Natal ward. Mrs Kiprios asked for her baby boy. She was given a baby who appeared to be of a less weight to the baby she was shown first,” he said.
According to Mr. Mweemba, Mrs. Kiprios said that her infant son was with another mother named Violet Mulenga, who is 26 years old.
Both mothers Mrs Kiprios and Ms Mulenga, claim that they did not give birth to the baby boy who weighed 3.4kg. Both are claiming for the same baby who weighed 4.4kg at birth. The dispute was brought to the attention of the hospital management, who discovered that the tag on the small baby’s hand had a birth weight of 4.4kg. The tag on the big baby was tight and read 3.4kg, which clearly indicated that the tags were swapped on the two babies. The hospital management decided to take swabs for DNA, which was collected by Dr. Petrenko Vladimir from the mentioned mothers and the babies in question,” he said
He claimed that the Ndola Central Police Station investigation team and family members of the people involved were present when DNA samples were collected.
“The same DNA specimen is likely to be taken to Zambia Police Service Headquarters’ Forensic Department for determination of the rightful parents to each of the babies in dispute. Logistics are being prepared for one Police officer and one hospital official to travel. The concerned parties have been assured to be availed with Forensic results as soon as possible,” he said.
