We recently reported the story of how a 14-year-old girl from Anambra killed a baby in Lagos for spiritual reasons. There are other stories like that. So, while we struggle against insecurity, we are also looking out for friends, family and neighbours who do not know what humanity is, and will do just about anything for mostly money.

The Police Command, Ekiti has arrested a woman, Ademiloye Felicia and her son, Adewumi, for the sexual exploitation of a minor. 

Spokesperson of the command, ASP Abutu Sunday, who disclosed this in a statement Monday, March 21, said that sometime in March 2019, the victim, a 15-year-old girl, left home for an extra moral lesson in preparation for her WAEC but did not return home.

The victim’s parents then reported a case of their missing daughter at the nearest Police station but all efforts made by the Police and her family members to take her back home were futile.

“However, on March 3, 2022, that is about three three (3) years later, the victim’s mother received a credible information about her daughter’s whereabout. She then alerted the Command’s Juvenile Welfare Center (JWC) of the State CID who then swung into action and traced the missing girl to the house of one Mrs Ademiloye Felicia,” the PPRO stated. 

“The victim was immediately rescued while Mrs Ademiloye Felicia and her son, Adewumi Ademiloye were subsequently arrested for further investigation.”

An investigation by the Police revealed that the victim was kidnapped by Adewumi Ademiloye and drugged.

The victim revealed that after consuming the drugs given to her by Adewumi Ademiloye, she could not remember how to get back home. She stated that she is now a drug addict due to the number of drugs consumed within this period of three years.

According to the now-18-year-old, Adewumi Ademiloye continued to sexually abuse her and she was given to different men on many occasions, each time he does not have money. These men had sex with her and paid Adewumi Ademiloye. He was paid between ten thousand naira to twenty thousand naira.

The investigation revealed that the victim was found with an 8-months pregnancy, but has not been registered in any health care centre or visited any hospital for antenatal care.

Adewumi Ademiloye confessed to committing the crime and will be charged to court alongside his mother for conspiracy, abduction, rape and child exploitation.

The victim has been taken to Ekiti Sexual Assault Referral Centre, Ado Ekiti for medical attention.

Bottom line:

According to UNICEF, six out of ten children in Nigeria experience emotional, physical or sexual abuse before the age of 18. The Nigerian police recorded 717 rape cases between January and May in 2020 as 95% of child sexual abuses go unreported because of fear of stigmatisation, and 90% of child abuse victims know their abuser, and despite overwhelming reported cases of sexual assaults, Nigeria has recorded only a significant number of rape convictions in its legal history.

The average prevalence of sexual abuse in Nigeria has not reduced. In Gombe, the incidence was the highest in the country. According to a survey, 45 per cent of individuals living in the state had experienced sexual violence in their life.

In a 2021 report for children in Enugu, the prevalence of child sexual abuse (CSA) was 35.7%. While the majority 40% of the victims were forced to watch pornography, most of the perpetrators were neighbours 29.3%. A higher proportion of the victims were abused once, 79 68.1%; when they were between 12 and 18 years old, 53.4%; and at home, 33.6%.

In another report, it was reported that healthcare and forensic management of CSA are poor, probably due to late presentation of victims at the hospital and to negligence on the part of health and security personnel. CSA is also possibly under-reported, with serious implications for the child and society. Prevention, proper medical treatment, management and follow-up for victims and their families, as well as making the perpetrators answerable for their crimes are highly recommended measures to tackle this issue.

Section 216 of the criminal code, applicable in the southern part of Nigeria, regards the indecent treatment of boys under fourteen as an offence of felony liable to imprisonment for seven years if done without consent. Section 218 of the criminal code recognises the defilement of girls under the age of thirteen as an offence of felony liable to imprisonment for life. Section 221 of the criminal code provides that the defilement of girls under sixteen and above thirteen is an offence of misdemeanours liable for imprisonment of two years.

The Penal code, applicable in Northern Nigeria, recognises the offence of child rape under Section 282 of the penal code which provides that: A man is said to commit rape who has sexual intercourse with a woman in any of the following circumstances: against her will; without her consent; with her consent when her consent has been obtained by putting her in fear of death or of hurt; with her consent when the man knows that he is not her husband and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married and also with or without her consent when she is under fourteen years of age or of unsound mind.

The Child Rights Act adopted by Nigeria in 2003 requires that the well-being of every child must be respected and considered paramount and provides that sex with a child is rape, and anyone who has sexual intercourse with a child is liable to imprisonment for life upon conviction.