The Commissioner of Police, Kwara State Command, Mr. Salihu Garba, on Wednesday said eight young men gang-raped a young lady (name withheld) who lives in Ilorin.
He stated that the police had arrested three of the suspects and were on the trail of the fleeing five suspects.
Parading the alleged rapists and other suspects in Ilorin, he identified the arrested suspects as Kadri Rafiu, Sikiru Jimoh and Mustapha Nasiru.
The police boss said, “On Wednesday, around 2pm, a woman in Ilorin was gang raped by eight boys. In the course of investigation, three of the suspects were arrested and we are on the trail of the remaining suspects.”
One of the suspects, Jimoh, confessed that seven of them actually raped the victim. While regretting their action, he stated that it was the work of Satan.
He said they (victim and suspects) lived in the same neigbourhood, adding that the boyfriend of the victim, identified as Tunji, lured the girl to them while they had a field day forcefully having carnal knowledge of the lady.
Jimoh said, “It is the work of Satan which I deeply regret. Actually, seven of us raped her. We have known one another for sometime as we live in the same street. Her boyfriend, Tunji, invited her and we raped her. Seven of us carried out the act but the boyfriend ran away. I regret my action.”
Another suspect, Rafiu, said he was not involved in the rape. He claimed that he was smoking when policemen arrested him.
“I was not involved in the rape, I was just smoking when policemen arrested and framed me up that I was among the people that raped her. Honestly, I did not rape her,” Rafiu said.
The CP said that the police had arrested no fewer than 12 other suspects for various crimes such as criminal conspiracy, illegal possession of firearms, armed robbery, possession of stolen vehicles, being a member of a secret cult and theft.
He appealed to parents and guardians to watch over their children, wards or dependants and provide useful information to the police to ensure a safe society.
Meanwhile, security chiefs in the state have begun moves to curb arms proliferation in the state and stop violence and other criminal activities in the state ahead of the 2015 elections.
They spoke during an inter-agency consultative committee summit which involved all the security agencies in the state. They promised to remain professional and efficient to ensure that the 2015 elections in the state were transparent and credible.
Members of the organised labour, the Independent National Electoral Commission, the Nigerian Bar Association and other relevant stakeholders attended the summit.
The security chiefs also urged political parties and their supporters to abide by electoral rules and regulations, warning that defaulters would face the law.
Garba said, “Let me use this opportunity to sound a note of warning to would be law breakers of our resolve not to hesitate to deal with any electoral offender comprehensively according to the laws of the land.
“To this end, I want to reiterate for emphasis, that we are security agents and not politicians. We are prepared to create a level-playing ground for all the parties as long as the game is played according to its rules.