A community vigilante group in Ebonyi has apprehended a 21-year-old man, identified as Uchechukwu Obura, for allegedly molesting a six-year-old girl.
The suspect, a native of Egushi in the Ebyia-Unupfu community, Abakaliki Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, confessed to the crime at the Neighbourhood Vigilante office in Nkaliki Sub-urban, Abakaliki.
The suspect explained to Southern City News that he lured the girl into a bathroom and had carnal knowledge of her.
“I took her to the bathroom when I wanted to bathe and pulled down her underwear and had sex with her. It was someone who saw us that reported the incident to her parents,” he said.
He explained that he was led by the devil to commit the unholy act and appealed to the victim’s family for forgiveness.
The father of the victim, Mr Nwifuru, expressed his sadness at the development and lamented that he never believed that such a fate would befall his daughter.
He promised to pursue the case to a logical conclusion so that it would serve as a deterrent to others.
Nwifuru stated, “I have been living in the same house with Uchechukwu for over six years now, but I feel so pained that he made my little daughter to go through such trauma. At first, he denied it until we went to hospital where the molestation was confirmed.
“We are from the same place, but I want the law to take its course on this issue so that it will serve as a deterrent to others who nurse such an unholy intention.”
The Chief Security Officer of Nkaliki Neighbourhood Watch Vigilante, Mr Ekene Onele, called on residents of the area to always report cases to his office at the appropriate time, adding that efforts were on to report the incident to the police for proper action against the suspect.