A traditional tea seller, identified simply has Abubakar, in Kontagora, Niger State, has been arrested by the police for abducting a 12-year-old and sexually abusing him for two weeks until he became ill and died.
According to the Punch, Abubakar abducted the 12-year-old, identified as Aminu, from his parents’ house and held him hostage in his apartment.
A neighbour, who got wind of Aminu’s abduction, raised the alarm and reported the case to the police at the Kontagora division.
While Abubakar was arrested, the boy was admitted to a hospital, where he later died.
An unnamed resident said the incident had left the parents of the victim traumatised.
He said, “The boy’s parents suddenly discovered that he was missing and asked for his whereabouts from his friends, who denied knowledge of his whereabouts. Afterwards, a case of abduction was reported to the police. That was early March.
“A man alerted us two weeks later that he saw Aminu with Maishai (Abubakar). The suspect initially denied that the boy was in his custody. The boy was later found in his apartment in a critical condition. He looked tired and pale. Maishai confessed he had sex with him several times.
“The police were called to arrest him and Aminu was rushed to a hospital. He eventually died last week. The parents do not want to talk about the incident for now; they are devastated,” the resident said.
A police source stated the Abubakar had pleaded guilty to a two-count charge of abduction and sodomy just before Aminu died.
“The unfortunate thing is that he was sentenced to one month’s imprisonment with a fine of N30,000, which is ridiculous. The punishment generated a lot of outcry.
“But it is not the police’s fault. What the police can do is to appeal the case or file a new charge, now that boy is dead,” he added.
The Niger State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Elkana James, confirmed Aminu’s death, saying that the case had been transferred to the command headquarters in Minna.
He added that the suspect would be re-arraigned on a fresh charge of culpable homicide.
He said, “Our legal team is reviewing the sentence. When the suspect was charged to court, the boy was not dead. So, he was charged with abduction and unnatural offences.”
