Via - The Sun
In years to come, haunting memories of June 4, 2013, will plague Mrs. Mary Kabiru, a 28-year-old expectant mother. It was the day she was allegedly assaulted, choked and gang-raped by her neighbours, who defied her pleas to be spared. Not even her condition as a disabled, poor pregnant woman could draw pity from the dark hearts of the assailants. Worst of all, these accused rapists are her neighbours.
The accused, two hefty men, pounced on her like hungry lions, ripped off her clothes and allegedly raped her right on her matrimonial bed.
Although she put up some resistance, she could not do much, given her condition. Besides, the splashing early morning rains drowned her cries for help, allowing her captors to have their way uninterrupted.
At the end of the illicit act, they left her with injuries and swollen eyes.
The worst is that, the Jikwoyi Police Station where the case was reported is being accused of attempts to sabotage investigation and consequent prosecution of the culprits, who are said to be walking the streets freely.
When Abuja Metro visited her apartment – a detached store-like-structure located in an alley way at the rear of the building occupied by Kazok Table Water – the distraught and battered sit-at-home housewife narrated her horrified story in tears.
"It was about to rain, so my husband who is a tricycle (keke) operator, put some pans outside for me to collect some rain water and left for work. As the rain started, I dashed outside to check if they were properly positioned. As I was coming back into the house, I saw Lanre and Arthur, my neighbours, standing by my window, half naked. I was shocked and was about to enter my room when one of them, Lanre, held my hands and requested to have sex with me. I pleaded with him to leave me alone as I was not interested. By then, the rain had started.
"It was at this time that Lanre pushed me into my room, locked the door from inside, dragged me to the bed and raped me. I was crying and pleading with him that I was pregnant and could have miscarriage but he held me by the neck, ripped off my clothes and raped me. After that, he stood up and left. I sat on the bed, crying when Arthur entered and he too did the same thing to me. After that he stood up and gave me N5,000 that I should not tell my husband. I refused to collect the money.
"I locked myself in the room and cried till my husband returned at about 11pm. He met me, crying and asked me what went wrong. I narrated the whole story to him. After I had finished, he broke into tears and cried throughout the night, saying his neighbours had betrayed him."
On June 5, she accompanied her 33-year-old husband, Mr. Kabiru Abdulaziz, to the Jikwoyi Police Station to report the incident.
Hand-in-gloves
At the Jikwoyi Police Station, some officers on duty allegedly subjected the couple to some delay tactics, as they were not given prompt attention.
According to the husband, "when I reported the case to the police the next day, they refused to act on time and demanded that I should give them N5,000 for paper and case file. I pleaded with them that I only had N1,000 on me, which I gave to them. After that, they accompanied me to the compound to arrest Lanre and Arthur but when they heard my voice, they ran away."
"We went back to the station where they kept us till 4pm before taking us to the Nyanya General Hospital for test on my wife. At the hospital, we were turned back and asked to come back the following morning. The nurse, who was furious said such tests were only conducted in the morning. We returned to the police station. In the night, Lanre and Arthur walked into the police station while I was talking with the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), who demanded to see my wife. They denied raping my wife and were asked to go.
"We were confused with the development because we thought they would be detained and investigated but the police just asked them to go. Thereafter, we were also asked to go and come back the next day. The following morning, we went back to the police station but the Investigation Police Officer (IPO) refused to attend to us. Rather, I was arrested and taken before a magistrate court in Karu and charged for public fighting but was granted bail."
Petition against police
The attitude of the police to the matter has attracted series of petitions from the law firm of Chibundu Osuagwu. In one of them, addressed to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and dated June 10, titled "Rape, assault, criminal intimidation, abatement of crime by three female police officers at Jikwoyi Police Station', the petitioner accused the police officers of breach of Section 4, part II of Police Act and Regulation. CAP 359.
The petition reads:
"We are lawyers to Mr. Kabiru Abdulaziz of Jikwoyi Phase 1 (behind Cherryfield Quarters) Jikwoyi, Abuja, FCT, and we state that: Our client is married to Mrs. Mary Kabiru and the couple lives together in Jikwoyi Karu, Abuja FCT; that our client's wife, Mrs. Mary Kabiru, on June 4, 2013, at about 5.00pm in the evening was raped, assaulted and dehumanised by two men, identified as Mr. Lanre and Arthur, in her matrimonial home.
"Our client reported the matter orally at the Jikwoyi Police Station at about 8am on June 5, 2013, and thereafter, a written complaint/petition from our law firm, concerning the issue was forwarded to the DPO, Jikwoyi police station.
"That the female police investigator assigned the matter and her two other female colleagues got very furious because of the petition addressed to the DPO and in the process boasted before me how they would sabotage the prosecution of the matter.
"Until this moment, the two accused suspects are not under any form of investigation and necessary or required medical tests are yet to be carried out, especially as the victim is about five months pregnant.
"The manner, conduct and utterances of the three female police officers assigned the matter amounts to clear breach of Section 4, part II of the Police Act and Regulation. CAP 359, which stipulates 'the police shall be employed for the prevention and detection of crime, the apprehension of offenders, the preservation of law and order, the protection of life and property and the due enforcement of all laws and regulation with which they are directly charged."
The law firm called for the investigation and prosecution of the female police officers for abetment of crime, which is a violation of Section 116 and Section 117 of the Penal Code Law.
We investigated
When Abuja Metro confronted the Divisional Police Officer, Jikwoyi Police Station, Rabiu Musa, a Superintendent of Police, with the allegations, he said his office had investigated the matter and it had been transferred to the FCT Command for necessary action.
"I am not aware of the petition against me but I can confirm that I am aware of the case in question. We have done our preliminary investigations and transferred the case to FCT Command. You know it is a rape case and this station has no powers to handle it. It is not true that we are sabotaging the case; we have done all that is within our powers. We took the victim to the hospital for test and we are going to forward the report of that test to the Command."
Till now, the outcome at the command, as the DPO said, has not been known and the pregnant woman, who complained of rape still awaits justice that seems stuck on the way.
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