Just got this sad report from Sun…The stories were all the same. Their common denominator was chilling. For instance, there was the story of a 78-year-old landlord who defiled his tenant’s daughter.
There was also that of a 10-year-old girl who was defiled by a student in one of the high institutions in Enugu. The student in question was staying with the girl’s family.
Narrating her story, the nine-year-old girl (name withheld) said that her landlord used threats and intimidation on her before committing the act on June 1.
She recalled how the suspect, Chief Ogbodo, invited her to his flat while he was alone and stripped her naked before assaulting her several times.
She recalled that after the act, she started bleeding severely and the suspect tried unsuccessfully to stop the bleeding, deploying both his handkerchief and shirt to clean the blood. She said he was still battling with the bleeding when his wife arrived and began knocking at the door.
“While he was cleaning, the wife came knocking at the door; the wife’s knock was so loud. When he later opened the door, the wife asked me about what the husband did, and I told her,” the girl recalled.
Our correspondent learnt that the case was charged to court and the man duly remanded. He was however, released and the case file was moved to the office of the DPP.
Similarly, a young woman narrated her experience at the hands of rapists who appear to have taken over the Coal City.
“I came out in the middle of the night to ease myself. But unknown to me, about five boys were hanging around the house. Immediately they sighted me, they attacked me, grabbed me and took turns to rape me. Afterwards, I reported the case to the police. Three of them were arrested, while two ran away. Since then, I have been receiving counselling and treatment at Tamar Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC).”Another victim a 14-year-old girl said that she was passing through a lonely lane in the city when three boys allegedly pounced on her, beat her up and violated her sexually.Also speaking, a distraught father of a young girl whose daughter was assaulted in his presence narrated the ugly incident. “I was inside my house at midnight when robbers barged into my home. They robbed me of my money and other valuables. They tortured me and then defiled my daughter right in my presence.”With no fewer than 320 cases of sexual assault recorded in less than one year, it might not be out of place to say that rapists were actively on the prowl in the Coal City hitherto, known for peace and social tranquility.
