Police inspector arrested for allegedly raping two minors

An inspector with the Bornu State Police Command Abubakar Musa, has been arrested  for allegedly raping two minors, aged 10 and 12, and the arrest came amidst rising cases of paedophilia and related sex and gender-based violence (SGBV) in the state.

Penpushing reports that, the mother and aunt to the two underage, Hadiza Saidu , said the officer resident  in the same neighbourhood with her family  was secretly having sexual intercourse with her girls.

The crying mother and aunt of the victims said, “a police officer in our neighbourhood raped my two daughters. His name is Abubakar Musa. He used to sneak into our house when none of us was around to sexually abuse the children’.

‘According to the kids, he used to finger one of them while directly having sexual intercourse with the other one. We took the matter to Metro police station and his colleagues called me aside to beg me that I should let the matter die for the sake of his job’,the woman narrated.

“I asked why were they not concerned about my own kids that have been abused? I insisted that justice must be served to my daughter and her little cousin who is the daughter of my younger sister”,she emphasied

The widow said the accused officer has been sending emissaries to beg her not to report the matter, adding that, “if he is not guilty, there is no way he would be begging us to save his job and sending people to beg us as well,”

Penpushing further reports that,   the Executive Director of Women In the New Nigeria and Youth Empowerment Initiative, Lucy Yunana assured that  her organisation  would not relent in ensuring that the victims get justice.

“I got the report that a police inspector defiled two little girls from the same house. When I got to the police station, I met the accused policeman in the office of the Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) who confessed that the girls attend the same school as his son and that there was a day when his son was not at home and he gave N50 to one of the girls who, in turn, hugged him in appreciation’.

“Even though he was initially pleading not to be exposed, the accused policeman changed his narrative at the police station. The officer was on Thursday taken to the State Police Headquarters before he was detained at the metro Divisional Police Headquarters’,Yunana said.

“We are not going to let this go or swept under the carpet. Rape of minors, by reckless paedophiles has been an everyday thing here in Borno State, especially in Maiduguri. But one man raping little cousins from blood sisters is one act of irresponsibility pushed beyond the limit,” she said.

Penpushing also reports that, the Bornu State Police Command Public Relations Officer, Edet Okon, confirmed the incident, denying the rumour of attempts to “sweep the matter under the carpet.”

“Of course the matter has been brought to our notice here at the Command Headquarters, and CP in his usual disposition directed that the accused policeman be put up for prosecution as soon as all the records of medical investigations are ready’.

“The CP and indeed the Nigerian police command don’t protect errant personnel, most especially when it comes to issues of allegations bordering on sexual abuse of minors. The concerned police inspector is currently in detention and would remain there until the case is charged to court.”