Her family, however, accused Nigerian prison officials of denying her the necessary transfer, leading to the worsening of her health….CONTINUE FULL READING>>>>>
Blessing Okoro, the retired police officer who was reportedly denied treatment by Aba Prison officials after an alleged police beating, is dead.
SaharaReporters had reported that she had earlier been diagnosed with liver complications and was referred to Enugu State by the Aba Teaching Hospital, which stated it could not manage her condition.
Her family, however, accused Nigerian prison officials of denying her the necessary transfer, leading to the worsening of her health.
Although she was later granted bail and released from prison, it was too late.
According to one of her sons, who preferred to remain anonymous, Blessing died after four different hospitals rejected her, stating that she had been brought in too late for treatment.
The only hospital that accepted her gave the family a “50-50 chance” of survival. her condition worsened on Friday, after which she was placed on oxygen, but she died on Saturday.
“We tried our best but the Nigerian system failed to let her live. She was never convicted of the crime she was accused of. The whole dispute was only escalated because of the issue she had with her then landlord, and suddenly she was accused of child trafficking, beaten, and made to suffer till she died,”
One of her distraught sons also said the system failed his mother.
“We tried our best to save her but God knows best.”
On July 28, SaharaReporters reported that the health of retired police officer, Blessing Okoro, who was detained over allegations of child trafficking in Anambra State, had deteriorated.
According to a family member, Blessing was only released on bail several days after a teaching hospital recommended her urgent transfer to Enugu State for specialised medical care due to liver complications.
Despite the recommendation, officials at Aba Prison — officially known as the Aba Medium Security Custodial Centre —reportedly denied the transfer until much later, when she was eventually granted bail.
“When the teaching hospital in Aba gave us a letter of transfer for her, they recommended that we urgently transfer her as they couldn’t handle the case,”
“Despite this recommendation, prison officials denied her transfer, saying they wouldn’t let her go till she got bail, as they have no one who will monitor her in Enugu, and that continued to worsen her case. In fact, she couldn’t get proper treatment afterwards. What we were told is that since she has been recommended for transfer, they have done their part.”
A medical document seen by SaharaReporters shows that multiple hard intra-abdominal tumors with features of metastasis and partial intestinal obstruction were found.
The document further stated: “There is associated grade 3 right hydronephrosis with impaired renal excretion.”
“The liver is normal in outline but enlarged, measuring about 19cm in cranio-caudal span. There is diffuse reduction in parenchymal density consistent with fatty infiltration. No lesions seen within it.
The gallbladder harbors multiple oval hyperdense lesions (HU: 80–120) within the body and neck, one of which measures about 17 x 18mm. No wall thickening.”
The family source further noted that her condition worsened after her release, as four hospitals reportedly rejected her.
“Four different hospitals rejected her. They said they cannot salvage her situation, and it is painful because the days she spent without getting transferred for the urgent medical care affected her,” the source said.
had also earlier reported that Okoro, founder of the Faith, Hope, and Charity Orphanage in Ogbor Hill, Aba, Abia State, was arrested in May 2025 over allegations of child trafficking.
Her family has consistently maintained that the accusations are false and stemmed from a tenancy dispute, as first reported by SaharaReporters on May 29, 2025.
They alleged that the police attempted to extort money from them, confiscated Okoro’s documents, and published misleading information branding her as a child trafficker.
The family also claimed she was denied medical care despite having undergone fibroid surgery shortly before her arrest…CONTINUE FULL READING>>>>>
