An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti has sentenced 37-year-old Deborah Ayeni to 14 years in prison for stealing a newborn baby.
Justice Lekan Olata delivered the judgment in Ayeni’s absence after she failed to appear in court for her trial following her release on bail. The court subsequently declared her a fugitive and ordered security agencies to arrest her.
The judge ruled that the 14-year sentence would commence from the date of her arrest. He also directed the court registrar to forward copies of the judgment and a letter declaring Ayeni wanted to the Nigeria Police, the Comptroller-General of Customs and the media.
Ayeni’s two sureties, including her father, Babatope Ebenezer Ayeni, were also ordered to serve six months in prison and pay the prescribed recognisance fees for failing to produce her in court.
The orders followed the revocation of Ayeni’s bail after she repeatedly failed to appear for trial. She was arraigned on September 1, 2025, and pleaded not guilty to a one-count charge of child stealing.
During the trial, prosecution counsel, Ibironke Odetola, told the court that Ayeni allegedly took a newborn belonging to Mustapher Aliu and his wife, Falmata, at a hospital in the Okeyinmi area of Ado-Ekiti on August 4, 2025.
According to the prosecution, Ayeni had previously lost a pregnancy but allegedly concealed the loss from her husband, who lived abroad, and continued to give the impression that she was pregnant.
Odetola told the court that Ayeni invited her husband to Nigeria for the supposed delivery and allegedly placed clothing around her abdomen to maintain the appearance of pregnancy.
The prosecution further alleged that Ayeni later gained access to the newborn at the hospital and took the child away. She reportedly handed the baby to a midwife, told her husband that she had given birth and subsequently buried a placenta.
The midwife reportedly became suspicious of the circumstances and alerted the police, leading to Ayeni’s arrest. The prosecution called four witnesses during the trial, while the stolen baby was eventually recovered alive.
