Fifteen-Month ‘Pregnancy’: An Investigation into a ‘Miracle’ Fertility Fraud

Chioma firmly asserts that Hope, the infant boy she cradles, is her biological child. Following eight years of unsuccessful efforts to become pregnant, she regards him as her miraculous offspring. “I’m the owner of my baby,” she states with conviction. She is seated beside her husband, Ike, within the office of a Nigerian state official who dedicates nearly an hour to questioning the pair. As the commissioner for women affairs and social welfare in Anambra state, Ify Obinabo possesses extensive expertise in settling family conflicts; however, this particular dispute is far from typical. Five individuals from Ike’s family, also present in the room, dispute that Hope is the couple’s biological offspring, contrary to Chioma and Ike’s assertion. Chioma states she “carried” the infant for approximately 15 months. Both the commissioner and Ike’s family express incredulity regarding the implausibility of this statement. Chioma reports experiencing coercion from Ike’s family to conceive, to the extent that they urged him to take another wife. Driven by her despair, she sought help at a “clinic” that provided an unconventional “treatment” – a bizarre and troubling deception exploiting women eager for motherhood, which includes the illicit trade of infants. Authorities granted the BBC permission to observe the commissioner’s conversation with Chioma, as part of our inquiry into the cryptic pregnancy fraud. The names of Chioma, Ike, and other individuals in this piece have been altered to safeguard them from retaliation within their communities. Nigeria exhibits one of the globe’s highest birth rates, where women frequently encounter societal pressure to bear children, potentially leading to exclusion or mistreatment if they are unable to. Due to this pressure, certain women resort to drastic measures to achieve their aspiration of motherhood. For more than a year, BBC Africa Eye has been examining the “cryptic pregnancy” deception. Fraudsters, impersonating medical professionals or nurses, persuade women that they possess a “miracle fertility treatment” assured to result in pregnancy. This initial “treatment” typically incurs a cost of hundreds of dollars and involves an injection, a beverage, or a substance introduced into the vagina. During our inquiry, neither the women nor the officials we interviewed could definitively state the contents of these substances. However, some women reported experiencing bodily alterations, such as abdominal swelling, which reinforced their belief in their pregnancy. Females who receive the “treatment” are cautioned against consulting traditional doctors or hospitals, as no ultrasound or pregnancy test would identify “the baby,” which the fraudsters assert is developing externally to the uterus. When the moment arrives to “deliver” the infant, women are informed that labor will commence solely after induction with a “rare and expensive drug,” necessitating additional payment. Descriptions of how the “delivery” occurs differ, yet all are unsettling. Some individuals are sedated, only to awaken with a mark resembling a Caesarean incision. Others report receiving an injection that induces a somnolent, hallucinatory condition, leading them to believe they are giving birth. Regardless of the method, the women ultimately receive infants they are led to believe they have delivered. Chioma informed commissioner Obinabo that upon her designated time to “deliver,” the purported doctor administered an injection to her waist and instructed her to push. She does not elaborate on how she acquired Hope, but describes the delivery as “painful.” Our investigative team successfully infiltrated one of these clandestine “clinics,” establishing contact with a woman identified as “Dr Ruth” by her clientele, by pretending to be a couple who had been attempting to conceive for eight years. This individual, referred to as “Dr Ruth,” operates her clinic on the second Saturday of each month within a run-down hotel in the town of Ihiala, located in south-eastern Anambra state. Outside her consultation room, scores of women await her in the hotel hallways, some displaying noticeably distended abdomens. The entire environment pulsates with optimism. On one occasion, significant festivities commence inside the room after a woman receives news of her pregnancy. When it became our undercover reporters’ opportunity to meet her, “Dr Ruth” assures them that the treatment is certain to be effective. She provides the woman with an injection, asserting it will allow the couple to “select” the gender of their prospective child – a medically unfeasible claim. Following their refusal of the injection, “Dr Ruth” gives them a packet containing crushed pills, in addition to further pills for home use, accompanied by directions regarding the timing of intercourse. This preliminary treatment carries a price of 350,000 naira ($205; £165). Our clandestine reporter neither consumed the medications nor adhered to any of “Dr Ruth’s” directives, returning to meet her four weeks subsequently. After moving a device resembling an ultrasound scanner over our reporter’s abdomen, a sound akin to a heartbeat is detected, and “Dr Ruth” extends congratulations for her pregnancy. Both express delight with cheers. Following the announcement of the positive news, “Dr Ruth” details the requirement to purchase a “scarce” and costly medication essential for the baby’s birth, priced between 1.5 and two million naira ($1,180; £945). Without this medication, the pregnancy could prolong past nine months, “Dr Ruth” asserts, ignoring scientific reality, and further states: “The baby will become malnourished – we’d need to build it up again.” “Dr Ruth” has not provided a response to the accusations presented to her by the BBC. The degree to which the women involved sincerely accept these assertions remains uncertain. However, indications as to their vulnerability to such audacious falsehoods can be partially observed in online communities where inaccurate information concerning pregnancy is prevalent. Cryptic pregnancy is an acknowledged medical condition where a woman remains unaware of her gestation until its advanced phases. Nevertheless, throughout our inquiry, the BBC uncovered extensive inaccurate information regarding this form of pregnancy across Facebook groups and pages. A woman from the US, who devotes her entire online page to her “cryptic pregnancy,” asserts that she has been pregnant “for years” and that her experience defies scientific explanation. Within private Facebook groups, numerous posts employ religious language to extol the fraudulent “treatment” as a “miracle” for individuals who have struggled to conceive. This collective inaccurate information contributes to reinforcing women’s faith in the deception. Participants in these groups originate not only from Nigeria but also from South Africa, the Caribbean, and the US. The fraudsters occasionally administer and contribute to these groups, allowing them to contact women who show interest in the “treatment.” Upon an individual indicating willingness to commence the fraudulent process, they are invited into more private WhatsApp groups. In these groups, administrators disseminate details concerning “cryptic clinics” and the procedures entailed. Officials inform us that to finalize the “treatment,” the fraudsters require newborn infants, and to achieve this, they target desperate and vulnerable women, many of whom are young and pregnant, in a nation where abortion is prohibited. During February 2024, the Anambra state health ministry conducted a raid on the establishment where Chioma purportedly “delivered” Hope. The BBC acquired video footage of the raid, which depicted a vast complex comprising two structures. One building housed rooms equipped with medical apparatus, seemingly for clients, while the other contained multiple pregnant women held involuntarily. Some of these individuals were as young as 17. Some individuals reported being deceived into attending the location, unaware that their infants would be sold to the fraudster’s clientele. Others, such as Uju (a pseudonym), were too fearful to inform their families of their pregnancies and sought an alternative. She stated she was offered 800,000 naira ($470; £380) for the infant. When questioned about regretting her choice to sell her baby, she responded: “I’m still confused.” Commissioner Obinabo, who has participated in her state’s initiatives to combat this deception, states that fraudsters exploit susceptible women like Uju to obtain infants. Following a strained interrogation, Commissioner Obinabo threatens to remove baby Hope from Chioma. However, Chioma presents her argument, and the commissioner ultimately accepts her account that she herself is a victim and