IZUNNA OKAFOR
A 40-year old man, who reportedly raped a 16-year-old girl in Anambra State, has confessed to the crime.
The suspect, Mr. Anietie Tim, who hails from Akwa Ibom State, was said to have been on the run since 2022, after he raped the 16-year old girl in Onitsha, the commercial city of the State.
It was also alleged that the suspect was residing at a military barrack in Onitsha, from where he was allegedly evading arrest since 2022 through the help of some military personnel in the barrack, while he continued boasting to be untouchable and even threatened the mother of the victim for making efforts to get him arrested.
However, barely three days after a recent media publication on the incident, the suspected rapist was on Thursday, apprehended through the help of the Anambra State Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Hon. Ify Obinabo; a radio presenter resident in Onitsha, Francis Pember; and some good-spirited individuals, who helped to lure the suspect to the spot where he was arrested.
In a trending video, while being interrogated by the Commissioner, the suspect, who is a furniture maker, confessed to the crime, claiming that he was seduced by the little girl, whom he said was very beautiful and looked charming and attractive to him.
“My body is working. I fucked her. I am a human being. She is a mature girl. Yes, I fuck her. But it was only once I did so,” he said.
Speaking after interrogating the suspect, the Commissioner, Obinabo, who frowned at the callousness and the promiscuity displayed by the suspect, also confuted him for same.
While commending the efforts of all who helped in facilitating the arrest of the suspect, the Commissioner also vowed that he must face the full weight of the law, while assuring that justice must be secured for the little girl. She further noted that the suspect will be charged to court without any delay, even as she directed that he be handed over to the Police, while arrangements are being concluded for his prosecution at the Children, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Magistrate Court in Awka, the capital city of the State.
Commissioner Obinabo re-emphasized that Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s administration has zero tolerance for crimes, not to talk of crimes against children, women and other vulnerable members of the society; warning that anyone indulging in such must be ready to face the full weight of the law, as there is no hiding place for them in Anambra.