A 45- year- old tricycle operator, Tunde Akindele, has been arrested for allegedly raping seven teenage girls at Kpakungun area Minna, in Chanchaga Local Government Area of Niger State.

The suspect alleged that the girls were coming to beg him for stipends.

He said: “I used to give them between N200 and N300 before meeting them. They visited my house regularly, whenever I was around because my wife and my children were not living with me.”

Director-General, Niger State Child Right Agency, Maryam Kolo, who confirmed this development yesterday, said the suspect has been apprehended and in custody.

She stressed that the father of five and an indigene of Osun State, who resides in Kpakungun area of Minna, admitted to have sexually assaulted the girls at different times.

It was alleged that the suspect took advantage of the victims’ vulnerability, who were within the age brackets of 11and 14 years and at different times.

“Any time Tunde wishes to assault us, he gives us N200 or N300,” said one of the victims.

But the Child Rights Agency boss has vowed that the case will not be pushed under the carpet, adding that cases from different parts of the state are on the increase, assuring that Tunde’s case would be thoroughly investigated and charged to court accordingly.

While faulting parents for allowing their girl child to hawk in the streets, she reminded them of the need to watch and protect them against all forms of abuse.

Kolo also called on the relevant agencies to work in synergy to ensure that perpetrators of rape do not go unpunished.

She said: “It is about time, we all sit up to fight the menace of sexual assault on innocent girls. We recently had another complaint of three men that raped a 14-year -old girl in Mashegu Local Government Area of the state.”

(Courtesy The Guardian: Text excluding headline)

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