Stolen Dora Nginza Hospital babies found safe, but questions remain about safety measures at hospital

A frantic search throughout Tuesday night paid off on Wednesday afternoon when two women who allegedly stole two premature babies from their incubators at the Dora Nginza Hospital neonatal unit were arrested and the babies returned.

Read more: Urgent search under way as two newborns abducted from Dora Nginza Hospital

Police Captain Sandra Janse van Rensburg confirmed that the babies were found and two women were arrested. They will appear in court this week.

Van Rensburg said a police officer who was part of the search spotted two women with babies close to Dora Nginza Hospital as he was leaving the facility. 

“He  immediately approached and then questioned them,” she said. The officer’s intuition turned out to be spot-on and the infants were identified as the stolen babies.

The suspects, aged 25 and 26, will appear in the New Brighton Magistrates’ Court.

Acting Nelson Mandela Bay District Commissioner Brigadier Loyiso Ngalo commended the dedicated SAPS team that had worked tirelessly since the kidnapping was reported. 

“We are grateful that they were found, and that they can be reunited with the mothers,” he said.

Sizwe Kupelo, the spokesperson for Eastern Cape health MEC Ntandokazi Capa, said the babies were doing well.

“The matter is now in the hands of the police and the department will not give further information,” he added.

Department communications director Siyanda Manana, however, said an investigation into the babies’ disappearance would take place.

In 2012, after a student nurse stole a baby from the same ward at Dora Nginza Hospital, a new security measure was brought in that required moms and newborns to be given identical armbands. The instruction to security guards at hospital exits are that a woman should not be allowed to leave the premises if their armbands do not match.

Daily Maverick is awaiting answers from Silver Security Solutions, the current security firm at the hospital. It is also not clear why a big bag that can be seen on CCTV footage when the suspects entered the hospital wasn’t searched when they left the hospital, allegedly with the babies. 

While waiting for news, family members and friends of the two mothers protested in front of the hospital. The family spoke of their pain upon hearing the news that the babies had disappeared. DM