By Haruna Salami
Three young men have been arrested in the Osun state capital for repeatedly gang-raping, molesting and intimidating a minor.
One of the suspects, now in detention, Usman Abiodun Alowonle had lured the 14 year old victim to a hotel where he and six of his friends raped her.
According to Value Female Network (VFN), a women rights NGO, someone who the victim confided in reported the case to them on March 29, 2023.
Speaking with the press, the Executive Director of Value Female Network, Dr. Costly Aderibigbe-Saba, the Gender Officer, Ms Zainab Agbolade and Human Rights Activist, Citizen Lola Wey, have reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring that the survivor, who is presently receiving routine medical care and psychological support from the state hospital, will get justice and that she would be able to fulfil her dream.
The VFN team promptly visited the victim at home and immediately liaised with human right activist and reported the incident to the Department of State Service (DSS) in Osogbo, Osun state.
The DSS officers working with VFN and the survivour arrested and detained three of the perpetrators on Friday, March 31, 2023.
However, before their arrest, one of the seven guys had reportedly died mysteriously, while 3 others are on the run.
It will be recalled that Usman who had earlier professed love to the teenage girl, but was turned down, lured her to join him for a drink in a hotel named Adcon Hotel in Olorunsogo neighbourhood, Zone B, along Ilesha Express Road, Osogbo, Osun state.
The victim had hesitated not to follow Usman because there were many people smoking at the hotel, but Usman assured her of safety and that they would stay at the back of the hotel to have a drink.
However, on entering the hotel, Usman lured the 14-year-old girl into one of the rooms and forcefully raped her while threatening to kill her if she screams or draws any form of attention.
Immediately after the damaging act, six more guys identified as Usman’s friends entered the room and started laughing scornfully at her while fondling their phones.
At that point, one of the guys told the victim that they have her nude pictures and rape video and threatened to release the video if she didn’t allow them to have their turn. Five more of Usman’s friends took turns to rape the 14-year-old victim while the 6th guy recorded the video the same day as she was held down and her mouth sealed.
Ever since that day, the same set of guys have relentlessly waylaid and gang-raped the 14-year old four consecutive times on different occasions and recorded her video each time, constantly threatening her with a knife and promising to leak a nude video of her, which they claimed to have in their possession.
The Victim further explained that she was too scared to narrate her ordeal or report the harassment to her grandma with whom she lived or anyone else, as she was forewarned by her oppressors to keep mum or die.
However in the evening, the VFN Team received a text message from the 14-year-old girl highly suggestive of her plans to commit suicide. “Sis, just say bye to me cus am just so tired of this world. Bye sis, I will miss you so much, bye”. The text message read.
This triggered the VFN Team to immediately go to her community and was lucky to find her alive and alone in the Mosque where she had attempted suicide by cutting her right arm skin multiple times with a blade.
She was immediately extracted from her community, provided with first aid and taken to the DSS where she was greatly counselled and reassured of the nailing of the perpetrators.
Subsequently she was taken to VFN Safe Home in Osogbo, a private safe home that provides temporary shelter and support for women and girls fleeing from gender-based violence, and has been living in there till date.
The investigating team also found that aside from the recorded videos on their phones, the perpetrators are also into internet fraud.
Three of the perpetrators, Usman Abiodun Alowonle, Malik Tunde Kazeem and Sadiq Ademola Bello were arraigned at a Magistrate Court, Osogbo on April 4, 2023.
The Magistrate, Olusegun Ayilara, after hearing from the defendants, denied their bail application and remanded the perpetrators at the Nigerian Correctional Center in Ilesa till the next court hearing scheduled for 5th June 2023.
