Tragedy was averted at Fasanya Street in the Fadeyi area of Lagos State when a 14-year-old girl almost allegedly passed out a few minutes after being allegedly raped by her parents’ landlord, simply identified as Christopher, Punch reports.
According to reports, she was said to have collapsed in the passage of her parents’ rented apartment in the said area, however, the prompt response of residents reportedly rescued her.
The landlord, who reports say has been arrested by policemen from the Alakara division after the victim confessed to her parents, was among those who came to her aid, pretending nothing happened between them.
On her account, the victim, an indigene of Delta State, said her ordeal started the day she ran an errand for the landlord, who hails from Imo State, while her mother was away from home.
She said Christopher had raped her thrice. According to her, “The first time was late last year when he asked me to buy him N10 sachet water. I bought the item and took it to his room, but he locked the door and pushed me to the bed. He pulled off my pants and I shouted for help. He said he would kill me with a knife he had kept on the table if I didn’t shut up. He then brought out a black and white cloth, which he used to cover my mouth.
“He brought something which he rubbed on my private parts and his own as well. When he finished, there was blood everywhere. He brought water and said I should wash the bloodstains on my clothes.
“He gave me N100 to buy a drug to reduce my pain. He said I should not let my parents know about what he did to me. He said if they noticed, I should lie that it was a classmate that did it,”the Junior Secondary School 1 pupil added.
Speaking further, she said the following day, the suspect sneaked to her parents’ apartment and asked her to bring the pants she wore the day he deflowered her.
“I asked him what he wanted to do with it; he said he only wanted to see it. I gave it to him, and he took it away. The following day, he returned it to me and said I should make sure I wear it. From that time, my private parts itched badly. I also found difficulties in passing out urine,” the 14-year-old noted.
The victim said on the day she passed out, the suspect tricked her again into his room and raped her, adding that after the alleged sex, she became weak.
She said the suspect gave her a tin of milk to drink, adding that after she left the room, she became dizzy and fainted. She noted that the suspect threatened to kill her if she mentioned his name to her parents as being responsible for her ordeal and also promised to buy her a mobile phone if she kept the secret.
The victim’s mother, simply identified as Elizabeth, said she rarely stayed at home due to the demand of her factory job, adding that her husband was jobless.
She said the family never suspected Christopher, because of the role he played while her daughter, the victim was ill.
“When my daughter started complaining about itching in her private parts and could not urinate well, she told me it was her classmate that raped her.
“The landlord took me to the police station and together with some policemen we started looking for this classmate who allegedly raped her. I spent a lot of money and we went to different places, until the police became tired.
“We took her to a hospital for medical test and when I could not wait, I left my daughter with Christopher. When I asked him about the result of the test, he told me the doctors said everything was in order.
“A few weeks after she fainted, I woke my daughter up around 2am and pestered her to open up on who actually raped her.
“It was then she confessed it was the landlord,” the mother sobbed.
Reports further revealed that soon after the suspect was arrested by the police, the victim was kidnapped.
While recalling the incident, the 14-year-old said she had gone out to dispose trash in the evening when she was abducted by three men.
She said, “They said I should not shout and that if I did, they would kill me. I can recognise one of them. They said I must not run, if I did, they would kill me. Then they took me to a house.
“They used clothes to cover my face and my mouth and raped me. I was shouting and crying, but nobody came to my rescue.
“After they were done, they started apologising to me. The following day, one of the rapists brought me back home around 6am,” she lamented.
Her father, Peter, said the family apprehended the suspect and took him to the Alakara Police Station.
Peter said their neighbours are now at logger-heads with them over the detention of the landlord.
“It is not our joy to continue to live in this kind of place, but what do we do? I lost my job in 2003 and my wife, who was a factory worker, has stopped working over this issue. We have spent our livelihood on the infection that affected her private parts.
“We need the help of the government and the good people of Nigeria, not only to rescue our daughter, but to save us and give us justice in this case,” he added.
The Coordinator of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team, Vivour-Adeniyi Titilola, said the victim had been taken to the Mirabel Medical Centre where a case of rape was established.
According to her, “We also informed the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Alakara Police Station and he organised officers who apprehended the suspect.
Titilayo said the victim’s mother did not disclose to them that the victim was gang-raped.
“I think the level of awareness of the family is low. But we will see the case through,” she affirmed.
Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, DSP Joe Offor, said the matter had been transferred to the State Department of Criminal Investigation, SDCI.
“I am not aware that some boys gang-raped her. What I know is that the man involved is a 60-year-old man.
“They all live together in Fadeyi. The case has been transferred to the SDCI and I have been informed that they have taken him to court,” the PPRO noted.
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