A 35-year-old man, Mohammed (surname withheld), has been arrested by the police in Niger State, over allegation of forcefully having carnal knowledge a 14-year-old girl, (names withheld), at Barke Saleh area of Minna, the state capital, after pretending to be assisting the victim.
The incident occurred at about 8.45 p.m. last Saturday, when the victim, in the company with one of her friends, was searching for her money which she lost on the fateful evening, after which the suspect accosted her and lured her to his house in the neighbourhood under the pretence that he would give her back the exact amount she had lost.
Metro gathered that the under-aged girl innocently followed the suspect to his house, believing that Mohammed would fulfill the promise to assist her with the money as he had promised.
It was further learnt that no sooner than she entered the suspect’s residence that he closed the door, bolted it at the back and allegedly forcefully made love to her against her consent.
Further checks revealed that the victim, who was said to be staying with her mother could not go back home until about 12.45 a.m. the following day (Sunday), October 23 after suffering some bruises on her private part.
It was further learnt that on her arrival at home in the early hours of the fateful Sunday, she was said to have been crying uncontrollably, as she was also bleeding from her private part and she narrated her ordeal to her mother after questioning.
An insider police source at the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (CIID) at the state police command headquarters, Minna, told Metro that upon the complaint by the mother of the victim, one Madam Hajara (surname withheld) at the police station, that the girl was taken to the Police Clinic Minna for medical examination and treatment.
The reliable police source who craved for anonymity in a brief chat with Metro, added that the suspect was promptly arrested by the police, after which he allegedly confessed to the crime.
Also when contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Niger State Police Command, Mr Bala Elkana, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), confirmed the incident, adding that the command had commenced discrete investigation into the matter after the arrest of the suspect, disclosing that at the completion of the investigation, the suspect would be arraigned in court for trial.