“The phenomenon of rape is all over the country, being reported in all the 36 states including Federal Capital Territory and the 774 Local Government Areas of the nation.” – Dr. Gloria Shajobi-Ibikule
The Ogun State Police Command has confirmed the arrest a 71-year-old landlord known as Adesina, for allegedly defiling and impregnating his tenant’s 14-year-old girl (name withheld) at Akegbeyale Street in Ifesowapo Akute, Ifo Local Government Area of the state.
PUNCH Metro learnt that the residents and other tenants were thrown into a state of shock when the septuagenarian suspect was found on Tuesday, April 9, 2024, having sexual intercourse with the 14-year-old girl at about 10:15 pm in the house bathroom.
The minor, according to a police source who was part of the team that arrested the 71-year-old suspect but was not permitted to speak for the command, was said to have made her way to the apartment’s bathroom to take a shower.
Our correspondent learnt that a few seconds later, the landlord was said to have gained entrance into the same bathroom and was believed to be having sexual intercourse with the teenager before he was caught in the act.
After this shocking discovery, some members of the community and other neighbours who witnessed the scene raised the alarm, leading to the arrest of the landlord by the men of the Ajuwon Police Division.
PUNCH Metro gathered that upon advice by the police and others on the need for the minor to be treated to avoid any infection, the father was said to have taken the 14-year-old girl to the hospital for medical examination.
However, the result of the test was said to have indicated that the minor was about six weeks pregnant.
Confirming the incident on Wednesday, the spokesperson for the state Police Command, Omolola Odutola, told our correspondent the case had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, where all parties would be grilled.
“The landlord has been arrested and detained. The father reported that he was caught defiling his 14-year-old daughter in their bathroom in the morning. The teenager was taken to Tamara Hospital in Akute for a medical examination.
“However, the medical report further showed that that wasn’t a first-time act because the test showed that the teenager was already six weeks pregnant. The state CID in Eleweran will soon take up the matter for further investigation,” Odutola stated.
In November 2023, the operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps reportedly apprehended another 76-year-old man, David Ogunsanwo, for allegedly defiling a 16-year-old girl in the Abeokuta area of the state. The teenager was also reportedly five months pregnant.
Last week a 75-year-old man was detained for defiling 8-year-old girl in Anambra state.
Indeed the competing reports about sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) cases, particularly rape across the country have stretched to frightening heights. This led to Dr. Gloria Shajobi-Ibikule in her paper, Legal Framework for Elimination of Rape and Other Sexually Related Offences in Nigeria,“ concluding that rape has federal character in Nigeria.
“The phenomenon of rape is all over the country, being reported in all the 36 states including Federal Capital Territory and the 774 Local Government Areas of the nation,” she said.
