A court in Anambra imprisons the owner of an orphanage for kidnapping and conspiracy.

Victoria Enwerem (Anosike), 42, was given several jail terms by the Children, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Court, a Chief Magistrate Court located in Awka, Anambra State.

Enwerem was charged in court with three counts, each punishable under the Criminal Code, the Laws of Anambra State of Nigeria, 1991, and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition and Protection) Laws of Anambra State, 2017, namely conspiring to steal children, fraudulently luring away and harboring children, and forcibly separating the children from their parents.

Five children were taken, and they ranged in age from three to ten.

The defendant had been found guilty of all three accusations made against her, according to the ruling Chief Magistrate, Genevieve Osakwe, who was presiding that day.

Therefore, the presiding chief magistrate declared that there was overwhelming evidence against the defendant, and that the prosecution had established its case beyond a reasonable doubt, based on the defendant's own oral testimony, the plaintiff's witnesses' testimony, and other material presented to the court.

The defendant, Her Worship, Genevieve Osakwe, sentenced Enwerem to four years in prison on count 1, eight years in prison on count 2, and a term of six months in prison on count 3, all of which would run consecutively and without the possibility of a fine.

According to the police prosecutor who handled the case, Enwerem planned to steal children from the well-known MCC Junction in Onitsha, Anambra State, in September 2022 and move them to an unidentified location with another person, Oluchi Ahamefula, who is still at large. However, Enwerem's luck ran out when she was apprehended by Nigerian Police Force officers who were conducting a stop and search operation in Oraifite, Anambra State.
After being detained, she was given bail and later traced down and arrested again in a rural area of Ebonyi State while in possession of two additional little children that she is accused of stealing from their parents. Afterwards, it was determined that she had continued to take infants while remaining undetected.

Enwerem, however, claimed that her defense attorney, one C.D. Nwaka-Ohuoha, Esq., had deceived her by obtaining an undisclosed sum of money from her and told her to stop attending court with the promise that she, the defense attorney, would end the case currently pending in court and ensure that the defendant would never go to prison when she was arraigned before the court a second time.

The presiding Magistrate, who was clearly upset, called the defense attorney's behavior "unprofessional legal practice."

The Chief Magistrate also praised the Nigerian Police Force for their perseverance and dedication, particularly in relation to finding and apprehending Enwerem so that he could face justice.

She also requested that the Ministry of Women Affairs in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, write to the Women and Social Welfare Ministry in Awka urgently to request that the orphanage home, which is purportedly run by Enwerem, be shut down.

The Anambra State Women and Social Welfare Commissioner, Mrs. Ify Obinabo, reacted to the news by expressing her happiness over the swift resolution of the case and giving the assurance that the Ministry would cooperate with her Port Harcourt counterpart to ensure that the aforementioned orphanage home is sealed off to protect unwary members of the public.

Obinabo pledged to use all of her resources to find the second suspect, who is currently at large, and expressed appreciation for the Court's efforts to ensure that children are protected in the state.