Tension has enveloped Gboko, Benue State, following the alleged disappearance of a newborn baby boy from a Primary Healthcare Centre in the town.
The baby was reportedly delivered in the early hours of Tuesday, August 11, 2026, and allegedly taken away by a woman who posed as a nurse at the facility.
An eyewitness, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the baby initially did not cry after delivery, prompting the nurse on duty to intervene. The newborn reportedly responded normally afterwards before he and his mother were moved to a ward for further care.
According to the source, a woman later approached the mother, claiming she had come to re-examine the baby.
The woman allegedly collected the child and headed towards the labour room.
The baby’s grandmother, who was with her daughter-in-law, reportedly followed them and stood at the entrance of the labour room but was allegedly told to wait outside.
The source said the woman subsequently disappeared with the baby, while nurses on duty denied taking the child from the ward and also said they did not know the woman who allegedly posed as a staff member.
The incident reportedly attracted family members and sympathisers to the health facility, with security personnel later deployed to prevent a breakdown of law and order.
The nurses on duty, including the officer in charge, were reportedly taken away for questioning as police commenced investigation.
Confirming the incident, the Benue State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Peter Aondongu, said the matter had been reported to the command.
Aondongu said the Divisional Police Officer in Gboko confirmed that the incident occurred at a PHC and was reported to the police.
He said, “Because of the attention the matter is generating, it has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, CID, at the State Headquarters in Makurdi. It is when they get here that we will have details of what happened.”
The police spokesman urged members of the public to remain calm while investigators work to establish the circumstances surrounding the baby’s disappearance.
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