What Happened to the Baby Stealers? - BBC Africa Eye documentary
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- Опубликовано: 31 май 2024
- BBC Africa Eye explores the impact of ‘The Baby Stealers’ investigation in Kenya’s fight against child trafficking.
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In 2020, #BBCAfricaEye exposed a network of child traffickers who preyed upon some of Kenya’s most vulnerable women. The traffickers ranged from homeless drug addicts to organised criminals and even corrupt medical staff. At the time, our undercover investigators managed to infiltrate underground rings selling stolen children for as little as 400 USD. After the broadcast of the ‘The Baby Stealers’, officials made public promises of firm government action and some of those involved in the underground trade were arrested.
Three years on, Africa Eye reporter Njeri Mwangi revisits some of Nairobi’s poorest neighbourhoods to find out how much impact the film had in the fight against child trafficking in Kenya. Has justice been served? And how much have things really changed since?
#babystealers #nairobi #kenya #bbcafrica
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Africa Eye brings you original, investigative journalism revealing secrets and rooting out injustice in the world’s most complex and exciting continent. Nothing stays hidden forever.
🎦 You can watch the 2020 "The Baby Stealers" investigation here: • The Baby Stealers - BB...
...and you can check out all #BBCAfricaEye investigations here: bit.ly/bbcafricaeye
Credits:
Reporter - Njeri Mwangi
Produced and Directed by Anna Payton
Africa Eye Editor - Tom Watson
Head of Longform and Investigations - Liz Gibbons
Executive Producer - Peter Murimi
Producer - Kassim Mohamed, Hussein Mohamed, Elijah Kanyi
Production Manager - Simon Frost
Editor - Ian Lloyd
Camera - Elijah Kanyi
Additional Camera - Stephen Foote, Abdi Mungai Yusuf, Brian Inganga, Rashid Ibrahim
Online Editor - Chris Stott
Dubbing Mixer - Jez Spencer
Colourist - Boyd Nagle
Impact Producer - Adelle Kalakouti
Digital Producer - Tamasin Ford
Social Media Producer - Anusha Kumar
Production Coordinator - Izzy Fleming, Sarah Clarke
Archive - K24, Royal Media/Citizen TV
Photography - Brian Inganga
Subscribe: bit.ly/subscribetoafrica
Website: www.bbc.com/africa
Facebook: / bbcnewsafrica
Twitter: / bbcafrica
Instagram: / bbcafrica
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🗞Read more about when Kenyan hospital employee Fred Leparan, who was caught selling a baby on the black market by #BBCAfricaEye, was sentenced to 25 years in jail. bbc.in/3ZJf4p3 (4 Oct 2023)
😅o
My mother was also offered money for me when I was born in 1981 in Kenya. The nurses offered her the money because she wasn’t married and my father was white. She didn’t take the offer and fled the hospital with me , she wasn’t even washed and ran out covered in blood. But don’t be fooled, when we went to live in The Netherlands and I was about 5. My mother and me walked in Amsterdam city a group of wealthy Arabs in traditional clothing ( looking like sultans) called my mother and asked her if they could buy me.. she pulled me close and said NO. All they saw was a Chubby looking long haired curly mixed girl.. I believe they would traffic me in the Arab countries to be a house slave or worse😢 I’m glad my mother protected me. My grandmother when working the field would often carry me in her kanga. If people approached she would turn it from her back to her belly so she could fully cover me. She wouldn’t let people see me at all she believed they were all jealous and hade bad intentions or evil eyes. My name is also Mueni I’m proud of my Kamba name and Kenyan blood. But this is all a real thing that is really a old problem when I can talk about 1981 😮it was happening also
Am happy you are safe
@@julee4580 thank you 🙏 ☺️I really hope all these children can be found and rescued and that it will never happen again. But where poverty is ik afraid evil will often appear when no one is looking. It’s good they did this documentary and shine a light on the situation that apparently is real old😔
Thank God you are safe
@@sockkavii4151 ❤️thank you wish all children will be safe and this never happens again
At least you safe🎉
I have always wondered what happened to the last chubby baby i wish the rescue was done sooner .May God protect that angel...
That baby has disturbed me since the day I watched the story.
Why did the journalists not snatch the child and immediately go to police 💔😭
It's quite simple, the journalist is not smart enough, if she was the good looking chubby little angel's life could have been saved
Lawwd!!! Exactly what I have always been concerned most about this whole documentary....at that time my child fitted the age bracket they steal I was horrified....😢
May God protect that chubby baby girl❤
I read the comments of that video before watching, I decided not to watch. Was that baby ever rescued?
Unfortunately, in Africa, you just have to be wealthy to avoid such problems. My heart breaks for these families.
thats everywhere tbh
It's EVERYWHERE
you mean the corrupt
Worse in Africa,
Systems & law enforcement work everywhere else
Stealing a child is a crime that should never be justified, regardless of the circumstances. It is a result of a twisted conscience and a greedy heart, and it causes immense suffering to the child's family, especially their mother.
Thanks Njeri for doing this follow-up. I always wondered whatever happened to that little chubby baby that was stolen. This is a scourge that needs to be erased. Little children should be free, and parents need to know that their kids are safe when they play outside. Hope those missing kids are found. Continue the fantastic work you're doing. And thanks BBC Africa Eye.
Would also like to see a follow-up on Forced to Beg also.
And who im referring to is the reporter and the individuals who were involved in the filming of the series. You are as corrupt as the officials you claim them to be, cuz who would in the first place go to an entity like your own neighbourhood police when you bloody know they’re corrupted.
Njeri Mwangi you are by far my favourite journalist in Africa and the world... The way you articulate your investigation and being able to express your emotions and put yourself in these women's shoes makes you one of the best... For you journalism is not a career, but a calling which it's innate.
Continue the great work and may you inspire our continent's citizens to appreciate and respect journalism.
You already won my heart....
Sending love all the way from SA 🇿🇦....
May God protects Kenya and it's citizens from these heartless vultures (baby stealers)... May God dry all these women's tears together with their families and friends by reuniting them with their children. 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽
Njeri Mwange you're amazing Africa needs you.... please be safe❤
I love this woman... She's deserves all the love and protection....
There should be an independent body in Kenya that deals with the actual search of missing children . Police officers cannot do the search 100% . There are so many gaps that need to be filled in child protection.
And it will work for a year or two and no longer be independent. Some things are nurtured by our torn cultural fabric
what makes you think that it wpuld be good for that to not be part of the police?
Police are corrupt
We saw the SHAKAHOLLA CULT KILLINGS IN KENYA BY PREACHERS IN KENYA.
OMG 😅 Finally!!! I always hoped someone would follow this story. Now let's spread the word and save the kids. Very proud of the reported.. Brave 👏
Corruption coupled with desperation is just awful. Thankful for this follow up documentary, hoping for justice to be served thoroughly and for this problem to come to an end.
So painful 😢😢 As a Zimbabwean we are poor but our police is active especially about crimes .
Zimbabwean police ? Shamwari uno nyepa sha. Same whatsapp group. Zimbo police is inept
You are lying,but let's proceed.
@@ekeesitemmanuel6428 corrupt too ?
Urikunyepa iwe... unoyi zeva here ZRP
Me watching BBC Zimbabwe 😅😅😅 you Lying nah
How Anita escaped the trap is something else💁🏾♀️💁🏾♀️seems like someone in the police is involved 💁🏾♀️
I think so too, I mean look at her. She must have been drugged out of her mind half of the time, she couldn't have done this by herself. I knew the only place they were going to find her was the cemetery but the ones behind the abductions are still out there and probably moved on to a different region.
I agree
I guinenly think the reports questions helped scare her …. She didn’t seem serious enuf too me ..&& as a New Yorker watching that transaction I was saying to myself , if Anita take the bait then she is a DUMB CRIMINAL .. because the reporter questions and demeanor was tooo soft and off . I think they should a made someone else lose as the buyer . And even tho I said all that , I still appreciate the reporter’s documentary
How is a nurse allowed to run a private health facility?
Africa is so wild.
Yes, it is a wildly corrupt continent.
Wow 😮
So, to you, the whole of the African continent is a country? A case in a particular country (Kenya) has made the whole of Africa wild???
Are you saying a nurse can open and operate a clinic in South Africa or Botswana or Morocco?
Why rate 54 countries as just one country?
@@okobolaoloyanmeji9925 The whole of it .
@@phillligawa4790 Well, again, you are absolutely wrong.
@@okobolaoloyanmeji9925 that’s your opinion, I can’t dispute it .
Thank you for part 2 of the story... Till this day I still talk about this issue in South Africa.
Keep up the good work 🙌🏾
For human sacrifice those words have stung my heart
Any woman or couple buying stolen children should surrender to the law. Children and adults need to do DNA testing with their parents to confirm their identity. This will help to reveal the culprits. These government administrators sit in the offices embezzling funds and not deliver to the people they serve.
For a serious case to drag on for 3 years with overwhelming evidence tells us there is a huge problem with our systems. It is such a shame that as a nation we have accepted mediocrity even in the highest levels of government that its now normal. My heart goes out to these women who cry everyday for their children. But remember za mwizi ni arobaini. They many never get caught but God in heaven hears the cries of these women
I’ve thought about this story since 2021 when I first saw it. Thank you so much for updating
There is a mole in the Kenyan government, the police in particular.
I still do blame you for letting Anita return with the baby!
That baby breaks my heart. so innocent😭😭😭😭😭I hope she is safe, angels of the Lord please protect her😭
I think the Angels of the Lord should have stepped in long ago...
As a parent with a daughter this break my heart immensely. No one should go through this. Personally I can't bear it, I feel very sorry for the families of these stolen children
this lady is really doing an amazing job ..And you too be safe out there when you doing this i hope some day such cases will decrease . sad to know kids are not safe out here.
Be careful Njeri! The corrupt system is so unpredictable
once again BBC Africa reports and documentary is the best show casing the real deep rooted issues in Africa. wel done to the whole team. congrats
Let's pray for Africa in general.....We are so corrupted 🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿
Greedy and stupid people mbona Uimbe mtoto wa wenyewe. Serikali inasitahili kufanya kitu na Police nae wawache kuangaisha wanainchi na kuwaitisha Hongo.
Prayer will do f#ck all, you know.
This is mad how sick they should all go to prison.😮😮
Thanks BBC for doing good job by news reports and this is not enough until the government of Kenya take action on child rober. Thanks again for doing great work for the public of Africa, this work of humanity will be remembered forever. ❤
Mary auma is in langata women's prison Remand going by an Alias Lucy.She used to run the canteen ..You will find her there.She has been there for a while
😮
Bless you Njeri.🤲 i just re-watched the 'baby stealer' episode last month and wondered if there is any updateds. Thank you for youre hard work!
not so many are practicing real journalism right now. just know that am sooo so proud of your work. it wont heal some pain but it brings hope. that's enough for a start
Thank you for your feedback. 🙏
@@BBCAfricahave you seen there is a comment on here from someone saying they have seen the baby that Anita had with her, please please look into that comment
Omg Njeri Mwangi God bless you for this. After watching and rewatching the first episode i was so scared that these people especially the mama lucy team would go scott-free.. Thank you for the follow-up. You did well. Atleast we got that sorted step by step.
Great job Njeri and the BBC crew ,kindly also give a follow up on "FORCED TO BEG: Tanzania's Trafficked Kids" .
Congrats to #BBCAfricaEye for such meaningful, powerful investigations. It's be awesome to add subs for non-native English speakers.
Wonderful work BBC eye Africa.
My heart is sinking each time i watch such stories 😢
Thank you for this follow up. I really wish the baby Anita abducted was rescued sooner. I understand BBC wanted to catch everything on camera for the sake of the documentary but given Anita’s history, the child’s well-being should have been prioritised and should have never allowed Anita to spend a single second with that child, considering it was an abduction. Law enforcement should have been called there and then because that baby would have been saved above all else. Also, Fred was arrested for child trafficking and while handcuffed, he still had the privilege of using his phone? It would have been relatively easy for him to communicate with other child traffickers or pass them information if he so wished to do so.
Its a TV station not child protecting service
How could they have done that without Anita suspecting and disappearing? The police would take time to come where she’d just run off
Exactly. They had the baby right in front of their eyes. They could have just snatched the little girl and ran off or threatening her, instead of making a deal for the next day…
When a govt official in Africa dismiss a story as fake then you should know that means involvement. That's how they operate
You've just said what I've been thinking this whole time. There is someone bigger involved
@@KenyanScorpio
You see,in Africa,if an ordinary person is involved in criminal activities,the justice system would so efficient in dealing with the situation but if someone at the top is involved the system would stutter in apprehending the culprit
The role played by journalists cannot be downplayed or taken for granted. The problem now is the reach. The people directly affected by this are the vulnerable poor. They would watch this and take caution when say going to public hospitals. But where will these people readily access BBC Eye?
Thank you BBC Africa for playing your role in exposing the corrupt governments of Africa. Unfortunately, as the saying goes, "The fish starts rotting from the head", I see why our nations have failed to even fight the basics of human rights let alone to be able to protect the lives and safety of our children. I would be surprised if the Kenyan government had stepped up its interest in this matter. Kenya is just a case study representing what is going on around the world.
BBC, great reporting. While there is a small win with a conviction, the situation is all around sad. The police and government workers need to sit up and make Africa not such a hell to live in 😢
The one with Anita...after putting a face to that baby it made my heart hurt.
This is really sad for all the affected families. This is emotionally killing someone all for the sake of money... really sad.
Well done BBC and keep up the great work!
Weuh I can't imagine what would become of me if I was a victim.... It's terrible to even think about your own blood missing without a trace... Thanks for making this video available, it's like reminder to keep your antenna up around your kids
I am so thankful to BBC Africa for doing this very, very important documentary. This has nothing to do with socioeconomic issues. This is purely a demand-supply issue that has been going on in Somalia since the beginning of the Somali Civil War. The Western world's millionaires have been using our African children as spare parts.
They had a chance to save the chubby baby but he slipped right thru their hands 😢very heartbreaking
Let's be honest, the main reason why these babies go missing without consequences is poverty. The poor in Kenya are not accorded the same level of legal protection as the middle and upper classes. If a child is stolen from an upmarket neighborhood in Nairobi, like Runda or Karen for instance, you can be assured that all elite units of Kenya's law enforcement system will be mobilized to find them. Today, the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI), Kenya's foremost law enforcement agency, is equipped with way more advanced capabilities than a decade ago; this includes sophisticated crime research & intelligence capabilities. If the DCI wants to track and arrest anyone within the territory of the Republic of Kenya, they can do it. So the issue of a trafficking suspect disappearing into thin air is impossible. These babies are taken simply because they are deemed not worthy enough of expending state resources to protect them. Add corruption to the mix, especially within the National Police Service, and you have a trafficker's paradise!
Uwee! I'm so sorry for these women. Erica Mukhisa Kimani talked about babies and kids being used for child sacrifices....I really thought she was exaggerating. Good journalism is happening here.
child trafficking is like modern day slavery. What do they do with those stolen children?
I’m pissed off that y’all let that kid go ..
OMG!!!💔
I cried watching the first documentary
Heartbreaking I will never take living in Australia for granted again. Justice for these innocent babies/children.
I've lived in Australia and Africa. African countries are beautiful and everything is cheap but the corruption and crime needs to be solved.
Child trafficing happens in Australia too. I live in America it happens here too it's everywhere
You defently Will 😂😂😂 you Will have forgot this in two days and your luxury lifestyle Will countine without thinking of Them
Extremely sad!
May God protect those kids wherever they are, may they be united with their families one of these days
As long as you can bribe in kenya , you can do anything, and the innocent or poor go to jail , real criminal are highly protected
This is heartbreaking💔
Why didn't the journalist grabbed the baby there n then instead of negotiating for next day. You can't trust drug addicts to keep their word. It's negligent on your part. You should have taken action
Drug addicts need quick money so it was strange she wanted to wait until the next day. I think someone warned her, maybe police officers were involved.
Insane 😢
I watched the First video a week or 2 ago n I Still want JUSTICE FOR THESE CHILDREN!!! I am still crying by watching this one as well please help these mothers this can happen to anyone poor or not. We need a better government everywhere because this is not okay. I want Justice for real. I feel for these mothers. It’s hurts me so bad cuz I know if it was me I would’ve been right I’ll probably kill myself if my child was taken from me. My child blessed my life and give me happiness and a purpose. I could imagine the same for these mothers. Protect these children!!! God bless Missing Child Kenya.
That's why I love Njeri Kangethe
In as much as it is gut wrenching, i hope the kids are somewhere being cared for.
11:51 Omg that baby legit looks like a doll, so cute
The people of Africa are so battered. May God bless the African people.
The little girl looks so innocent and pretty 😢 hopes she is safe wherever she is
😢Njeri I love your hair style❤
The hardship in Africa is getting out of hands.
And you guys made a mistake by letting her getting away with that innocent baby.
I’m here to comment again that I saw the baby Anita brought. I saw her in town. Hope she’s found
Saw her in which town? I hope you have informed the police
@BBC news Africa have you seen this information please
Is she well?
Are you sure? She must be 2 or 3 years old by now. Please tell the police
One should make a distinction between stolen and sold babies, it’s totally different
One of the flaws of broadcasting is lack of follow up. Many are just interested in putting out an intriguing and popular story that gains global attention forgetting that this stories are real people facing real situations
I commend @BBC African Eye for following up on this story, it’s heartbreaking but thank you for helping us understand that this crime is still real and still going on
Thank you for your feedback and staying with this investigation. 🙏
@@BBCAfricaplease look at the comment from @vickymathenga2533 she said she has seen the baby anita had with her please look into this
This is inhumanity 😢 # stop baby stealers
Oh another very educative, informative documentary packed full with a whole lot more! Cheers BBC and a Very Happy Halloween to all of your Staff both within and without! May the Almighty God together with the rest of The Powers That Be, continue to Guide, Direct and Protect us now & forevermore (Amen/Ameen) Khadeeja Alghali-Rahman (London, UK)👏👍💥😒🐝🕴️🦂🦟🕸️🐜🦅🐚🐡🦃🦌🦔🦋🐐🐎🐌🦗⚓🐑🕊️👁️🤼🏞️🏖️🌻🌴🌜🌛
« It is cheaper to buy a baby than a cow » SHOCKING
I think it high time that Mama Lucy kibaki facility is closed down for a while and proper reforms are done there. It cannot be that it's always on the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
We need ALMIGHTY GOD to manifest His Glory and POWER in our nations!!
This is much bigger than Kenya, they are enticing the less fortunate with cents to abduct babies. Breaking hearts and bruising souls forever. Thanks for reporting!!!
heeey......pls come to nakuru too
God keep the world am its citizen safe
My heart breaks for these families. it is more expensive to buy a cow than a child!!!God help us.
What do the buyers/stealers do with the babies?
So so sad! :-(☹☹
It very sad to see this happen. But I think they should have taken their time to investigate everyone including the police. I believe the police and all security apparatus might be involved in this horrible crime. Because I don't see why they haven't solved any case concerning these missing children.
What is BBC Africa doing to Homeless Mothers...Besides Sharing the Story. Give them Shelter for safety
That's the job of the government
💔💔💔
My heart breaks for chelsea💔 we have the same name I hope she and all the other kids get found….no parent deserves this. The poor gets no justice
Some policemen are very much involved in this evil business
Sad 😢where are the fathers of this children
if it was something about football or oil the government would sink millions into it.
Government should do something for these women on the street
Im from Texas my heart and thoughts and prayers go out to all the mother's and families there in Kenya and all over Africa
Corrupt people in power are complicit. Why not rope in other better equipped agencies like Interpol, FBI etc. It happens to poor families no one cares.
Trust me, Kenya's DCI is sufficiently equipped to handle this issue without the involvement of any external party. The problem, as you rightly point out, is corruption and the shameless exploitation of the poor.
Thumbs up to Njeri Mwangi!!!!!!!!
I think they're still there, I passed by a street in town on a Sunday evening and some random woman approached me, holding a child and asked me "madam nikuuzie haka? Hata hakaliagi na nikona kengine pia kadogo ukitaka." I felt it was off and told her "unaniuzia aje mtoto?" She then started raising her voice ati natàka kumwibia mtoto. Wah
Ngai😢😢😢😢
Sound Of Freedom manenos
Oh God this not happening can't stop crying
But you only show the faces of a part of the madness 🧐🧐🧐🧐
😢
Why was the security officer at the end of the ally during the attempted sting operation?