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Woman buys baby to get council accommodation in London

Faces jail for smuggling three-month-old Nigerian boy into Britain

  • By Justin Davenport, Evening Standard
  • Published: 00:08 May 18, 2008
  • Gulf News

London: A Nigerian woman bought a baby in her home country so she could qualify for a council home in London, it was revealed on Saturday.

Peace Sandberg, 40, a Kensington Housing Trust worker, is facing jail after being convicted of bringing the three-month-old boy into Britain.

The court heard how she flew to Nigeria to collect the child after hearing she faced eviction from her council home.

She had been living in temporary accommodation because she had a 12-year-old daughter. However, officials found the daughter was living abroad with her father, and Sandberg was informed she had to leave the flat.

She flew to Nigeria and collected the baby before returning to Heathrow and telling immigration officials it was hers. She then approached the council's homeless unit asking for accommodation. Staff called police because they had seen her a few months earlier with no signs of pregnancy.

Police found a receipt in Sandberg's belongings from a woman in Nigeria for 90,000 Nigerian naira (Dh2,660) which is believed to have been the amount she paid for the baby. When interviewed, Sandberg said the boy was her cousin's who had died.

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