Anambra State police commissioner, Mr Garba Umar has confirmed the arrest of Corporal Barau Garba, the police officer who allegedly abducted and raped a 14-year-old girl for days in Onitsha last week.
CP Umar told journalists that the command moved in on hearing of the disturbing news and arrested the culprit, who he said was currently facing police internal disciplinary procedure.
Umar described the action of the police officer as a very sad one for the command and police in general, which does not reflect the core values of the Nigeria Police force, while vowing to ensure that justice waas done.
He said, “The command wishes to confirm the arrest of force number 275601, Corporal Barau Garba attached to 7PMF Sokoto but deployed to Anambra State on special duty for the alleged abduction and defilement of a 14years old girl of Hausa quarters in Asaba, Delta State.
“The erring policeman was arrested, defaulted and detained accordingly; and is facing police internal disciplinary procedures. He will be arraigned before the appropriate court of the land as soon as the criminal investigation against him is concluded,” Umar said.
Though the errant police officer was not paraded before journalists, the commissioner said that confession from the culprit was that he picked up the wandering minor in Asaba and took her to his house but never had sex with her.
But Umar insisted that even if he did not have sex with her, he is still culpable for taking her home instead of the usual procedure of reporting lost persons.
On the DPO of the area who was alleged to have begged the parents of teee girl to abandon the matter on the fact that they both come fromnyhe north, Umar said he could not speak on that as the right thing had been done, which is to bring the victim and the culprit to say how it happened.
He added that, “Nigeria Police Force is one organisation that does not spare one of its own in things like this, and I can assure you that justice will not only be done, but seen to have been done.”
The police corporal was alleged to have picked up the minor (name withheld) in Onitsha where she had gone on an errand for her father from Asaba, but lost her transport fare and could not return home.
He was said to have taken her home and raped her repeatedly for days to the point of rupturing her private part before she had access to his phone, which she used to call her parents.
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