A woman who travelled from Nigeria to the United Kingdom last summer has been found by a British court to have unlawfully brought a baby into the country using a false birth narrative and forged documents, the BBC has reported.
Identified only as “Susan” for legal reasons, the Nigerian national had been living in West Yorkshire with her husband and children since mid-2023. Before leaving the UK for Nigeria in June 2024, Susan informed her GP that she was pregnant. However, medical assessments, including scans and blood tests, later confirmed she was not expecting a child and had, in fact, been diagnosed with a tumour.
Upon her return to the UK with a baby girl—referred to in court as “Eleanor”—Susan was arrested at Gatwick Airport on suspicion of child trafficking. Sussex Police later released her on bail. A DNA test subsequently showed that neither Susan nor her husband had any biological link to the baby.
Despite requesting a second DNA test, which yielded the same result, Susan maintained that she had undergone IVF treatment in Nigeria using donor sperm and eggs. She submitted documents and media claiming to support her claim, including a letter from a Nigerian hospital and images allegedly taken during childbirth. However, investigations ordered by the Family Court in Leeds cast doubt on the authenticity of the evidence.
According to the BBC, Social worker Henrietta Coker, who was commissioned by the court to examine Susan’s claims, visited both the clinic named in the IVF letter and the location Susan claimed to have given birth. The IVF centre had no record of Susan receiving treatment, and staff told Ms. Coker the letter presented was forged. The supposed birth facility, described as a dilapidated three-bedroom apartment, raised further concerns. Ms. Coker also reported finding unqualified teenagers in nurses’ uniforms on the premises.
A doctor who had signed the letter attesting to the birth later admitted to Ms. Coker that Susan had not given birth at the location, though someone else had. He added that impersonation was common in the area and suggested the baby might have been purchased.
The court was also presented with messages from Susan’s mobile phone, sent to a contact listed as “Mum of Lagos Baby.” The messages included requests for delivery items and quotations for hospital bills and medications, which authorities said pointed to a transaction for the baby. The local authority told the court that the messages had been set to self-destruct automatically, which further raised suspicions.
Recorder William Tyler KC, who presided over the case, ruled that Susan and her husband had misled authorities with false claims and fabricated evidence. He determined that they had caused Eleanor emotional and psychological harm by staging a false narrative of her origin.
At a final remote hearing attended by the BBC, Susan and her husband requested that the child be returned to their custody. Their legal team argued they could provide care and stability. However, the child’s guardian disagreed, citing the couple’s ongoing dishonesty about Eleanor’s origin.
The court issued a declaration of non-parentage and directed that Eleanor be placed for adoption. She will receive British citizenship and a new identity, though her biological parents remain unknown.
This case follows a similar incident involving a child brought into Manchester Airport under false pretences in 2023. Ms. Coker, who has assisted in multiple child protection cases, stated that she has encountered approximately a dozen such instances involving babies allegedly trafficked from West Africa to the UK, often under the guise of fertility treatments.
She explained that illegal adoption and child trafficking in Nigeria are longstanding concerns, with over 200 “baby factories” shut down in the last five years. Some facilities reportedly involved the exploitation of kidnapped girls forced to give birth.
Responding to the case, Patricia Durr, CEO of the UK-based anti-trafficking charity ECPAT, said it highlighted serious abuses of children’s rights. “These crimes strip children of their identity and history,” she said, urging for stronger safeguards.
A UK Home Office spokesperson stated: “Falsely claiming to be a child’s parent to gain entry to the UK is a criminal offence. Those found guilty will face prosecution. Border Force officers take steps to protect individuals at risk when suspicions arise.”
According to the BBC, the Nigerian High Commission was contacted for comment but did not respond.
