Miessan claimed she found the child in a street bin. File picture: Photodisc

by Paul Hooper

A childless Ashford couple who desperately tried to start a family for more than a decade have been jailed - for smuggling in a baby from Africa.

Kacou Miessan, 44, and 39-year-old wife Raymonde tried to conceive unsuccessfully for 13 years, including failed IVF treatment.

The couple were so set on being parents, Raymonde returned to her native Sierra Leone and returned a few months later in May last year clutching a baby boy.

"we intended to give something good back by giving matys a good life...” – raymonde miessan

Raymonde registered the birth in her home country and because she was a French national was able to get a passport for him – and the two then began their new life with "dad" in Crownfield Road, Ashford.

But now a judge at Canterbury Crown Court has heard the "mum" had lied to the authorities about giving birth - she had never been pregnant.

She later told a story about own her mother finding the child in a street bin – still attached to his umbilical chord – and offering it to her.

Raymonde went to Sierre Leone and registered him as her own. DNA tests would later reveal child's parents were most likely from South Africa or Namibia.

James Bilsland, prosecuting, revealed the tangled web of lies that stretched from Sierra Leone to Ashford Borough Council – and now to jail.

The truth about the affair only came to light during an acrimonious bust-up with a relative over sub-letting of property which wound up at Canterbury County Court for judgement.

Christopher Harding, defending Raymonde, said the district judge asked Kacou if the child had been brought here illegally – and he confessed.

The case was then referred to social services and now the baby they always wanted has been put up for adoption – and the couple have each been sent to prison for 12 months for the deception.

Raymonde Miessan brought a child back from Sierra Leone

Kacou's barrister Puneet Rai said: "From the outset he has been open and honest about what had occurred. He was at pains emphasising was the joy this child had brought to them."

Mr Harding added: "Because of the failure of the IVF treatment this was in effect an act of desperation. They have now already suffered by the loss of this child."

Raymonde told investigators: "We did it to help him. We are sorry we didn't do it by the rules. We intended to give something good back by giving him a good life."

Raymonde had told police that in her home country "no one was safe".

She said: "Everybody's life is precious. There were loads of children who were abandoned. I am sorry that I laugh because it's a good job I only came back with one. If I had been able to I would have brought in more because there were loads of children who were abandoned... there were loads of children dead.

"It is true that I lied to the authorities, but to me it was to save a child from death, give him an identity, a name, an education. Now he has been taken away from me."

Raymonde revealed that when she was with the baby, she received a call from her husband asking her to get the baby to speak down the telephone.

Her husband said: "I wanted to hear his voice. I say something stupid to her like 'Please make him cry so I can hear his voice', so I can use my telephone to record his voice. At least I will always have his voice on my telephone."

Kacou – who only played father for eight weeks before the truth was revealed - added: "He was everything to us.

"He is more than everything to us. For us, he was a present from God.

"So we said that we were going to take care of him, give him a very good education as far as we can. I was going to try to save some money for him so that he can go to university. I wanted the best for him.

"For us it's not enough because we want to stay with him not only for one hour a day, but I want to stay and look at him. I want to change his nappy. I want to give him his food. I will do anything.

"We didn't do this to harm him, to do something wrong. We done it to help him to get a better life. I just don't know what is going to happen to him now.

"It is true we didn't do it the right way but we didn't want to deceive anyone. For us it was him, it's not like we did it for some kind of return, to claim some benefits."

But Judge Adele Williams, pictured right, told them: "The mischief in this offence was that you disguised the child's identity, travelling across international borders on a false ID. It is a very serious matter.

"You told lies about the child's identity and subverted all the proper and necessary checks and procedures."

The couple had admitted smuggling the child into the UK with fake documents.

Matys has since been taken into care and a High Court judge has ruled he is to be offered for adoption.