Mother and Daughter Connive to Sell Baby for US$180
Tore allegedly colluded with an unknown nurse to induce labour, resulting in a premature delivery.
Mother and Daughter Connive to Sell Baby for US$180
A 16-year-old girl from Murehwa and her mother (47) appeared in court on Monday charged with selling the teenager’s newborn baby for US$180.
They were joined by Dion Tore (34) in facing charges of violating the Trafficking in Persons Act.
The three were brought before Harare regional magistrate, Mrs Tildah Mazhande. The teenager has since been placed in the custody of the Social Welfare Department, while her mother and Tore are set to finalise their bail application tomorrow.
According to prosecutor Ms Mercy Masamvi, the three conspired to arrange an unlawful adoption of the baby the girl and the teenager’s mother indicated they were willing to sell the baby to Tore, who had a history of persistent miscarriages.
In January, the mother of the teenager met Tore on the WhatsApp group, Sora neMiti, where they exchanged contact details.
She told Tore that her daughter was pregnant, but intended to abort the child, but Tore said she wanted to adopt the baby due to her ongoing struggles with miscarriages.
Mother and Daughter Connive to Sell Baby for US$180
On February 22, Tore and the teenager agreed to meet in Harare and arranged a scan that confirmed the unborn baby was a girl, about seven months and three weeks old.
The court heard after the scan, the girl went to Sally Mugabe Hospital, where Tore allegedly colluded with an unknown nurse to induce labour, resulting in a premature delivery.
On February 25, the teenager gave birth, and on March 5, she handed the newborn to Tore at the hospital. Tore then created a fake death record for the baby to cover up the sale.
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The mother reportedly received a total of US$180 from Tore through her Ecocash account between May and August. The baby is now nine months old.
The three were arrested after police in Murehwa received a tip-off.
