A woman, identified as Mrs. Esther Abgundu, a native of the Gwer Local Government Area of Benue State, has been accused of inserting a hot knife in her five-year-old niece’s private parts.
According to a petition by an NGO, the Justice Development and Peace Commission of the Ekiti Catholic Diocese, the act was carried out on November 26. The petitioner said it was informed that the offence of the victim was that she ate the food of the suspect’s baby.
The petition read in part, “On November 26, 2017, the victim was babysitting the baby of the respondent (Abgundu) and in the course of feeding the baby, the victim ate a spoon of the baby’s food.
This annoyed the respondent and she inserted pepper into her niece’s private parts. The respondent further put a knife in the fire and inserted the hot knife into the victim’s private parts. She also beat up the girl and told her not to cry.”
The JDPI indicted the police in the petition signed by its Director, Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Akingbade, which was sent to the National Human Rights Commission.
“The respondent was released barely few hours after her arrest and boastfully roamed the streets of Ijelu-Ekiti freely as if nothing happened.
We hereby urge you, as bastion of hope and front runner in protection of human rights, to use your good offices and intervene in this matter of cruelty against the victim by ensuring that the respondent is brought to book to serve as a deterrent to whoever still engages in acts of inhuman and degrading treatment to others, especially to children.”
The Police Public Relations Officer in Ekiti, Alberto Adeyemi, who confirmed the incident, said the police were still investigating the incident. He said, “The parents of the victim have been invited to the police headquarters in Ado Ekiti. We will ensure justice in the matter. Anyone indicted in the investigation will be prosecuted.”
