A 43-year-old man, Ifeanyi Adieme has been arrested for allegedly defiling an 11-year-old (name withheld) the girl’s parents handed her over to Adieme to look after his three children.
The girl who attends Iba Estate Primary School, Ojo, Lagos, on Ma 20, 2018, opened up to one of the coordinators of her church’s children section on how she had been subjected to sexual abuse and defilement by Adieme.
The pastor of the church was said to have reported the matter to Iba Police Station, following a medical confirmation of Adeime’s sexual abuse of the girl, and he was arrested.
The pastor who refused to give out his name said he was angry when he heard that a little girl was raped by his uncle and he was provoked to call for Adieme’s arrest.
According to the Pastor, Adieme was not a member of the church but he allowed his children to attend the church every Sunday. “We only know the children as our members; they have been coming for a long time. But, we don’t know their father, in fact, today is my first time of seeing him”.
Adieme, who runs a frozen food retail shop and was detained at the station for allegedly raping the girl, initially denied touching her saying: “I didn’t touch her. I am a Christian and would not do such a thing, I hope the hospital can detect if I went into her private part? Let them found that out if I was the one.’’
Adieme who hails from Nsugbe town in Anambra State but lives at number 19 Oremeji Street, Ibatedo, Ojo Lagos narrated further that he once had a beautiful and good wife who died in January, adding that it was as a result of who would help him look after his children that made him seek for a help.
“I brought her to my house and enrolled her at Iba Estate Primary School. As time went by she couldn’t do house chores as I expected and I would caution her. Then on Friday 18th of this month, I came back home and saw a candle burning in the parlour. I asked who put the candle; she said it was my son. I said you that is older that I brought into this home to take care of my children, you are not taking care of them well, so I just beat her but not so much and they left to church. I was at home waiting for them to come back from church when police came and arrested me”.
A medical report from Igando General Hospital confirmed that the girl was actually defiled.
Around 9:30am on Monday, the pastor, a member of the church and Adieme’s elder brother were at the station. They pleaded with the DPO, Mr Gbenga Ogunsakin not to refer Adieme to Lagos State Police Command, but grant him bail in order to look after his children. At this time, Ogunsakin called in the victim, to narrate in details how Adieme abused her.
According to the girl, it all started on a Friday night around 10pm after Adieme’s chidren had gone to bed. She said: “He called me into his room, When I entered he brought out his private part. I screamed and made to leave the room, he dragged me back and warned me not to make a noise. He asked me to kneel down and began to lick. I told him I can’t do that. He hit me on the head and said that he will beat me if I don’t do it. I started doing it; he held my head and was pushing it inside my mouth. When something started coming out, I tried to withdraw but he said I should continue to lick it”
“Another night, I wanted to go and sleep he called me back. He pulled all my cloth and asked me to lie down on the bed. Then he started doing it. He said that if I tell anybody that he will kill me. After sometime he stopped. His son had woken up at that time, he went outside and came back and started again. I was crying all through, he beat me and said I should stop crying.”
She added that on the first day it happened that her mother called Adieme. She said that Adieme gave her the phone to speak to her mother but that as soon as she began to tell her mother what happened, Adieme quickly collected the phone and turned it off.
When the DPO could no longer tolerate what he was hearing from the victim, he ordered that Adieme be brought out from the cell. He wanted to know Adieme’s motive, why he raped the girl three times and why he made her lick his sperm.
Adieme fell on his knees and begged for mercy; he said it was the devil that pushed him and more likely to be the curse that was placed on him by his wife’s relative.
The case has since been transferred to the Gender Unit of the Lagos State Police Command.
Adejoke Cole, a Superintendent of Police (SP) of Lagos State Police Command in charge of Gender Unit expressed worrisome over the increase rate of child rape in the state. After documentation and hand over of the case, the victim, was taken to Mirabel Centre, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja for medical tests and treatment.
However, the state’s Police Public Relations Officer(PPRO) Mr Chike Oti, who confirmed the incident, added that the suspect was in custody and will soon face the law.
