Precious
According to Premium Times NG,
The police in Lagos on Friday said they have arrested a man seen in a video kissing a three-year-old girl.
Bala Elkana, the Lagos police spokesperson said the suspect was arrested through the concerted efforts of well-meaning Nigerians and detectives from its gender unit.
The suspect was declared wanted on Wednesday after a video went viral in which he was seen kissing the little girl inappropriately.
The video was circulated amidst a nationwide outcry against rape, following an incident in which a student, Vera Omozuma, was assaulted in a church in Benin. Omozuma died days after the attack.
Another student, Barakat Bello who, was also raped and killed near her home.
Following the outrage on social media over the video showing the three-year-old girl being violated, the police declared him wanted.
Mr Elkana said the suspect, Adeyeye Babatunde, a final year student of Botany Department, Lagos State University, is in custody and had been handed over to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba, for prosecution.
“Attention of Lagos State Police Command was drawn to a viral video showing one Adeyeye Oluwatosin Babatunde ‘m’ of Kajola Street, Shagamu, Ogun State, a Botany student of Lagos State University, kissing his three years old step sister (name withheld). The incident happened on 02/6/2020 in their residence at Shagamu.
“The Commissioner of Police Lagos State, CP Hakeem Odumosu PSC tasked detectives from the Gender Unit to analyse the video and apprehend the suspect. The team got the suspect on 5/6/2020 at about 1100 hours. He is handed over to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba for diligent prosecution in Court,” Mr Elkana said in the statement.
“I did a video with the girl, me kissing her with no bad intentions. After I did the video, I uploaded on my WhatsApp status and a lady messaged me that I’m a rapist”.
“I was sitting outside with my sister, we were playing outside in public. While my Daddy was sitting beside me, my neighbours and we were playing.
“I was like, this is not the first time of me posting this baby girl and you know her very well. She blocked me immediately, she recorded it and posted it on her WhatsApp status and social media,” the suspect narrated.
Mr Babatunde further narrated that he did a video apologising to Nigerians for what he did.
“I am really sorry, I didn’t know it will be this bad, because of the relationship between me and my sister,” he said.
The command urged citizens to continue to speak out against sexual and gender-based violence and help the police put an end to rape, child ab use and crime against women and children.
Image Credit: Google
