The Kwara State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps has arrested a 19-year-old boy, Jamiu Akande, for allegedly defiling a nine-year-old girl at the Pakata Area, Ilorin in Ilorin West Local Government Area of the state.
The suspect, according to sources close to the NSCDC, reportedly started his sexual escapade with the victim in December 2023 and had been having constant sex with her.
The Public Relations Officer of NSCDC, Ayoola Michael ASC, who confirmed the incident said the suspect, who is a regular visitor to Babareke house in Ipata Oloje, started assaulting her sexually on December 1, 2023.
“Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect frequently visited the victim’s residence under the guise of seeing his friend, thereby gaining access to the victim.
“He lured the victim to an uncompleted building on December 1, 2023, and sexually assaulted her. Subsequently, on April 16, 2024, he sent her to buy bread for him and then led her to a dilapidated building where he subjected her to additional sexual abuse.
“The victim disclosed that the suspect had been sexually assaulting her since December 2023”, the NSCDC said.
He narrated that on Tuesday, April 16, 2024, at approximately 20:30hrs, the case was reported to the gender unit of the command by Alhaja Yusuf Mariam Joke, The Director of Child Ministry of Woman Affairs, following a distress call from Babareke House, Ipata Oloje Area in Ilorin.
“Without delay, the command swiftly responded and apprehended the suspect after painstaking efforts by officers of the Command,” he said.
Ayoola said that the suspect had confessed to the crime and would be charged to a court of competent jurisdiction for onward prosecution.
The state commandant of the NSCDC, Mohammed Umar, expressed great dismay at the alarming surge in cases of rape and defilement of minors, stressing that those who commit such awful acts would be punished severely.
He urged parents and guardians to remain watchful and ensure that their children are always near them.
