Divorced, abandoned, and alone facing her pregnancy: The tragedy of C. Ngom, convicted after a clandestine abortion

A black bag. A baby girl, weighing about one kilogram. And a young woman, hospitalized after severe bleeding, who found herself in prison a few days later. Divorced, a mother of one, and estranged from her family, C. Ngom admitted to searching on Facebook for medication to terminate her pregnancy. Tried this Friday in the Dakar court for flagrant offenses, she was sentenced to six months in prison.

At 26, this cleaning woman had already experienced a failed marriage. Her divorce, according to her defense, caused a rift with her family. Then she became pregnant by her boyfriend. She carried the child for six months while, according to her statements, the father wasn't taking responsibility and she dreaded having to face the judgment of others alone.

On October 4, 2026, this story unfolded at Nabil Choukair Hospital in Dakar. That day, C. Ngom was admitted to the emergency room. She was suffering from abdominal pain and heavy bleeding. Doctors examined her and determined that she had just given birth.

But where is the baby?

Alerted by medical staff, her companions went to her home. They returned with a black bag. Inside was the body of a female fetus, approximately six months pregnant and weighing nearly one kilogram.

It's all there, in that bag. A pregnancy that didn't reach full term. A baby that didn't grow up in its mother's arms. And a case that leaves the hospital to land on the desk of investigators at the Parcelles Assainies district police station. Commissioner Sow's men open an investigation for voluntary termination of pregnancy.

"I no longer wanted to bear this burden."

On October 6, in front of the police, C. Ngom finally confessed to what she had previously denied. She admitted to searching on Facebook for someone who could sell her medication to terminate her pregnancy. She said she paid 3,000 CFA francs for a pack of pills, delivered by an intermediary. She stated that she took them on Saturday, before the miscarriage.

The child's father, she explains, is a teacher named Kazimir, who lives in Fatick. He was aware of her pregnancy, but, according to her, the man refused to take responsibility.

There was also the divorce. The fear of another pregnancy out of wedlock. The difficult relationship with her mother. The feeling of being alone, even though she was already a mother. She doesn't just describe a pregnancy. She recounts the weight of a situation she felt she could no longer bear. During her hearing, she admitted to terminating her pregnancy before offering her apologies.

In the dock at the Dakar Magistrates' Court, C. Ngom partially changed her statements. She initially contested the facts, claiming it was a natural abortion.

In his observations, the public prosecutor remained unconvinced. He argued that the defendant had been pregnant for six months before deciding to terminate the pregnancy by obtaining medication through Facebook. The prosecution reiterated her own statements to investigators and maintained that she remained in denial. The prosecutor requested a one-year prison sentence.

In his defense, attorney Étienne Wally Diouf urged the court to look beyond the specific charges. He described a young woman married off at a very young age by her parents, whose marriage failed and who was subsequently abandoned by her family. The lawyer doubted his client fully grasped the consequences of her actions and pleaded for leniency. Attorney Ibamar Diop concurred with this request.

The court eventually found Coumba Ngom guilty and sentenced her to six months in prison.