Rita Ebirim is seeking justice after her five-year-old daughter was allegedly defiled by her brother-in-law in Lagos.
Speaking with our correspondent on Friday, the distressed mother recounted how her estranged husband filed for divorce on August 2, 2022. While awaiting trial, the court granted him access to their daughter.
During one of the visits to her father, the young girl was allegedly defiled by his brother, as Ebirim explained. “One day in February last year, he came to pick her up for the first time in the morning and returned her in the evening. That day I sensed that something was wrong with my girl and I voiced my suspicion to my lawyer but he waved it off,” she said.
“The next time, he came to take her to visit him and she returned to me at night beyond the speculated time. Later, when I wanted to bathe her, she started crying, pushing my hands away, that I shouldn’t touch her ‘there’. When I asked her who touched her there she told me her uncle touched her.”
Ebirim immediately sought medical attention for her daughter, who was found to have bruises on her private parts indicating sexual molestation. The case was reported to the Ketu police station and the Lagos State Sexual and Domestic Violence Agency.
Despite the suspect’s arrest, he was later released on bail, leaving Ebirim feeling that justice is elusive as the case drags on.
An update on the case was provided by the Executive Secretary of the DSVA, Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, who disclosed that a forensic interview had been conducted for the child. The case has been referred to the Directorate of Public Prosecutions for legal advice after investigations were conducted and the case forwarded to Cece Yara Child Advocacy Centre for further action.
