The issue of rape, in Nigeria today, has become an everyday crime and this time one 13 -year-old One Blessing Chia, a 13 year old is the victim.
The suspect |
Speaking with Vanguard, she claimed her step father,
Benjamin Richard had the regular habit of beating after he lusted after
her.
“The first time my mother was not around, he took cane and was
beating me and told me that if I messed up, he would kill me, that if I
shouted or if my mummy heard anything about it, he was going to kill me.
2014, I told him that I would tell my mummy and I dared to see if he
would kill me. So l told my mummy. He raped me four times, the first
time was when my mother travelled to Makurdi, Benue State.’’Blessing’s
mother, Mrs Grace Richard, 30, said her daughter reported to her that
the stepfather raped her but her husband denied it when she confronted
him.
She confirmed that it was during the period she travelled to her home
state (Benue) and left her daughter in the care of her stepfather that
he first allegedly raped her.
Blessing’s mother said she and her current husband have been together
for four years during which she had a boy child for him. The boy, she
said, lives with her mother-in-law.
Mrs Martina Moses, Grace’s elder sister, also spoke on the incident.
‘’I was in Gwagalape on Thursday when my sister called me around 5pm
to help settle an issue Blessing had with a neighbour over SIM card.
While in their house, I saw my sister’s husband and I asked him where my
sister was. He said my sister was on her way to home, that he sent her
to collect money from a friend.
‘’I then asked after my niece, Blessing. Richard got angry and said
the girl was very stubborn, that he was going to tie her up in a room
before dropping me off . He said if he didn’t tie the girl up, she would
run away. He tied the girl’s hands and feet in my presence. I pleaded
on my niece’s behalf with his stepfather to no avail.
‘’Later that night, my sister came to my house around 11pm and I
asked her what she was doing outside that late. She told me that her
husband was threatening her.
‘’Grace was afraid to go back home because she was sure Richard would
beat her up. That prompted her to go to her elder sister, Martina’s
house, so that Martina could follow her back home in order to stop
Richard carrying out his threat of beating her. And because it was late
in the night, Grace was forced to pass the night at the elder sister’s
place.
‘’The following day, being Friday, Martina sent somebody to Richard’s
place to bring Blessing. But rather releasing Blessing to the man
Martina sent, Richard took the girl on his motorcycle to Martina’s house
himself.
‘’On getting to Martina’s house, Blessing ran into her aunty’s arms,
and wept profusely after which she claimed that her mother’s husband
raped her four times.
‘’After listening to Blessing, Martina said she took the girl to
Richard and asked her to repeat what she told her inside in the presence
of the stepfather and Blessing repeated everything.
“Right there, l told my sister and her husband that the rape issue
will not be swept under the carpet. l asked my brother to go and report
the issue at a police station, but my brother advised that we first
report the matter to Richard’s mother. It was then that Richard’s mother
said we should take Blessing for test, and that took us to Aso police
station where we were referred to Nyanya police station since the
alleged rape took place in Nyanya.
“When we got to Nyanya police station, the police interrogated the
stepfather and he denied yet again. It was at that point the police
locked him up.
‘’The police told Richard that the only thing that could save him was
if the result of the test indicated that Blessing was still a virgin,
but the test showed that Blessing had not only been deflowered but also
pregnant. Meanwhile, the police that had the hospital report with them
did not disclose the number of weeks Blessing has been pregnant.
‘’We went back to the police station the following day after Richard
was detained, only to be told that his father had bailed him.
‘’On getting back to Richard’s house after he was bailed, he tried to
convince his neighbours to accept that Blessing was wayward, but his
neighbours refused to play along with him. Rather they claimed they
heard Blessing screaming on that Thursday but did know the reason.’’
The investigating police officer, IPO, in charge of the case, confirmed the report to Sunday Vanguard.