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| Africa: Subsaharan |
| Seven Texas children found in Nigeria orphanage |
| 2004-08-18 |
| Youths, thin and covered with bites, returned to state Tuesday, August 17, 2004 Posted: 12:50 PM EDT (1650 GMT) HOUSTON, Texas (AP) -- Seven Texas children were discovered abandoned at a Nigerian orphanage, ravaged by disease and malnutrition, and have been brought back to the state. Child Protective Services, which received emergency custody of the children Monday, is investigating accusations that the children's adoptive mother in Houston abandoned them in Nigeria in October while going to work in Iraq as a private contractor. The children returned to Texas on Friday. Three of the children were hospitalized with malaria and later released, said CPS spokeswoman Estella Olguin. The youths were thin and covered with mosquito bites, infections and scars. The three boys and four girls, ranging from 8 to 16, were discovered in late July by a visiting Texas missionary who notified American lawmakers. "It's horrible, horrible," Olguin said. "I haven't seen anything like it. Seven children fending for themselves in a foreign country where they have no family members." Now, they are living in two Houston foster homes. Four siblings were adopted from Houston in 1996, followed by a set of three siblings from Dallas in 2001, according to authorities who interviewed the children and their adoptive mother. The woman, whose name was not released, took all the children in October to Nigeria, where a relative of her fiance lived. The children were enrolled in school and the mother returned to Houston about 30 days later. She went to work in Iraq in April. But the children were later removed from school because payment for their tuition stopped and lived in a wooden shack. Nigerian child-protection authorities found the children malnourished and sick and moved them to an orphanage in late July. A minister from a San Antonio church who overheard the children speaking with American accents interviewed them, then alerted U.S. congressmen who called CPS. State officials will determine whether criminal charges will be filed against the adoptive mother, who is due back in court August 26. Yet another argument for requiring a license to have children. |
| Posted by:Zenster |
| #12 Seven Texas children were discovered abandoned You all are missing the point. I expect even socialist turing machine representative may be pissed at this. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-08-18 5:59:10 PM |
| #11 You know things are bad when "Nigerian Child Protective Services" comes to the rescue! Gives me the goosebumps. |
| Posted by: Sgt. D.T. 2004-08-18 4:41:17 PM |
| #10 Mrs. Davis, with all due respect, you left out the word "felony." It's "felony child abandonment." I hope this clears things up. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-08-18 2:49:52 PM |
| #9 How can this...not have been at least arrested for child abandonment, if not attempted murder? |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2004-08-18 1:59:46 PM |
| #8 Far as I'm concerned, this selfish bitch should have her citizenship revoked and be exiled to Nigeria But, Frank G, where's the I think she needs to be strung up by her intestines. Warmer ... you're getting warmer, Angie. Personally, I was considering forced sterilization, but I'm sure there's some niggling amendment in the constitution prohibiting it. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-08-18 1:49:08 PM |
| #7 This was the top story in today's Houston Chronicle. It wasn't clear whether the woman was Nigerian; the Chronicle didn't name her because she hadn't been charged with a crime (yet). Her story and the kids' story does not match up. I think she needs to be strung up by her intestines. The Chronicle article says she's living in a boarding house and driving a late-model Mercedes. |
| Posted by: Angie Schultz 2004-08-18 1:34:05 PM |
| #6 I AM HAVE EXCELLENT BUSINESS IOPPORTUNITIES FOR YOU!!!! |
| Posted by: HAKEEM OKHAMBALA 2004-08-18 1:14:18 PM |
| #5 I've only known two Nigerians--my pal Kayode who was a great, hard-working computer consultant and wound up going to Microsoft after a few months working at our company, and his wife whose name escapes me but she was a cardiologist finishing her residency here in Pittsburgh. Don't lump them in with the filth that steal credit cards and send out email scams. We got plenty of Americans that do that, too. |
| Posted by: Dar 2004-08-18 12:06:05 PM |
| #4 State officials will determine whether criminal charges will be filed against the adoptive mother, who is due back in court August 26. Far as I'm concerned, this selfish bitch should have her citizenship revoked and be exiled to Nigeria |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-08-18 11:45:56 AM |
| #3 Nigerians, Im dealing with one right now here at work. Went to our online store and made a huge order for CD's. Now they want me to help them get a ton (literaly) of Bibles from any store in the area and they are just itching to email me credit card info. Cant stand these lowlifes. Now I have the work of straigtening out the online order for the CD's paid for with more than likely a stolen card. Losers. |
| Posted by: 2% 2004-08-18 11:22:55 AM |
| #2 I wouldn't put Somalia behind Nigeria in that Hopeless category, and Sudan's a front-runner as well. |
| Posted by: Dar 2004-08-18 10:04:58 AM |
| #1 Nigerians - probably the most hopeless people in the world. |
| Posted by: Howard UK 2004-08-18 4:19:08 AM |