Confusion as police charge man for banditry after reporting Immigration officer for raping wife
Yusuf Samaila is currently being incarcerated at the prison after spending days in Police custody for reporting a Deputy Superintendent of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Sani Muazu to the authority that his wife was raped.
Samaila had earlier this month reported the rape case of his wife to the Bauchi State Police authority and the rape suspect, an Immigration officer was arrested and released within 24 hours.
Subsequently, the victim’s husband and complainant were later detained on the accusation that he was “aiding and abetting” kidnapping.
While speaking with journalists in Bauchi, she accused the Commissioner of Police, Auwal Mohammed of failing to investigate her rape case but swiftly arrested her husband, Yusuf Samaila on an allegation of defamation based on the suspect’s (Immigration officer’s) complaint.
The victim, a mother of two, who said she is heartbroken, claimed that the police failed to investigate her complaint which Mu’azu allegedly perpetrated in the presence of two of her children while they arrested and detained her husband and granted the suspect bail in less than 24 hours.
The victim had approached a human rights civil society organization, African Child Development and Human Rights Protection in Bauchi seeking justice. However, the organisation has petitioned the Commissioner of Police to re-arrest the suspect for justice but to no avail.
She expressed regret that the police had failed to respond to her complaint but arrested and detained her husband on the request of the suspect for six days.
The ostensibly traumatised lady said that the rape incident and arrest of her husband had further worsen her family financial situation.
During a press briefing on Wednesday, the founder of African Child Development and Human Rights Protection, Barrister Muhammed Alkassim, condemned the Bauchi CP for failing to investigate a serious crime of rape.
The victim “is crying for help and justice. We condemn the failure of the Commissioner of Police, Bauchi State, Command to investigate the case of alleged rape. It is important to state categorically that the police have derailed from the general and specific objective of the establishment of the newly established police act as provided under section 1 and 2 of the same act.
“As human rights organization it is also important to further draw the attention of the Bauchi CP in further discharging his primary duty of the Nigeria Police pursuant to Section 4 of the Nigeria Police Act which is to prevent, detect crime and protect the right and freedom of every person in Nigeria as provided in the constitution,” he said.
In his reaction, the Command’s spokesman Ahmed Wakil, confirmed the petition which he said that the CP directed his deputy, Criminal Investigation Department to investigate. “The case was investigated and the two lawyers that raised the petition –Nazir Umar and Aliyu Mohammed came to the Criminal department and a case of this magnitude of rape was mentioned.
“It is a capital offense, an investigation is still ongoing and the outcome of the investigation will be revealed to the public”
Commenting on the arrest of the victim’s husband, Wakil said that he has been charged to court on allegation of criminal defamation.
“He is also charged for aiding and abetting offenses to within kidnapping and the command received petition from Nazir Umar and Co chambers on behalf of their client Sani Saleh Mauzu (who was accused of rape) against the said Yusuf Samiala and based on that the suspect (rape victim’s husband) was arrested,” he said. (The Guardian)
