Baby stolen from Kisii referral hospital re-united with parents
Baby Fenesensia Kemunto’s grandmother holds her as her parents, Evans and Calister Ratemo, watch. The baby had been stolen on Wednesday from Kisii County Teaching and Referral Hospital and was later found abandoned at one of the hospital’s gates on the morning of September 29, 2016. PHOTO | ELGAR MACHUKA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The good news, she says, was broken to them early Thursday morning.
- Ms Kemunto said her husband was also overwhelmed with emotion.
- Dr Mogondo Migosi, the paediatrician who examined the baby, said she was in a stable condition.
- Hospital Superintendent Dr Enock Ondari said the hospital will install more CCTV cameras.
A three-month-old baby stolen from Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital on Monday has been reunited with his parents.
It was all smiles for Calister Kemunto and her husband Evans Ratemo as their baby, Fenesensia Kemunto, was handed over to them by hospital authorities and police officers.
In an interview with Nation.co.ke, Ms Kemunto described the two days their baby was missing as “hell on earth”.
“God has indeed answered our prayers. We have been shuttling between the hospital and the Kisii Police Station recording statements and finding out the status of their investigations,” Ms Kemunto said.
The good news, she says, was broken to them early Thursday morning.
“We received a call from Nyakoe Location Chief Jared Okong’o asking us to rush to the hospital to identify an abandoned baby,” said Ms Kemunto.
“We stopped what we were doing and rushed to where the chief directed us to go.
“All this time, I was hoping and praying that that the abandoned baby was indeed ours. On reaching the hospital, we were told to wait as she was being examined,” she adds.
OVERWHELMED
She went on, “I was calm. I obliged and waited. When she was brought to us, tears rolled down my cheeks. It was my daughter. She had her trademark smile on.”
Ms Kemunto said her husband was also overwhelmed with emotion.
“It was a mixture of joy, laughter and tears,” she said.
Mr Ratemo thanked the hospital staff for providing CCTV footage to police officers, and the media for highlighting the issue.
According to the hospital staff, the baby was discovered near the hospital’s old gate early Thursday morning.
Mogondo Migosi, the paediatrician who examined the baby, said she was in a stable condition.
“The baby is in perfect shape, her vitals are normal and all examinations have come out great,” said Mr Migosi.
He added that the baby was ready to be taken home.
“The parents must first clear with the police,” he said, and warned parents against leaving their children with strangers.
Kisii Level Six Hospital Superintendent Enock Ondari said the hospital plans to install more CCTV cameras.
“We plan to increase the numbers to 158 … from the current 32,” he said.
“More cameras will boost security in the hospital and prevent a repeat of such incidents,” he said.
