The Kano State Police Command said it had arraigned 57 suspected rapists who defiled more than 57 minors in the state in the last three weeks.
The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Muhammad Musa Katsina, made the disclosure while briefing newsmen at Police Headquarters, Bompai on Monday.
Katsina said the suspects were apprehended within the last three weeks across the state, with the help of good people of the state who provided first-hand report to the police through the various hotlines provided.
He revealed that 12 of the 18 victims, who were mostly aged between two and seven, were confirmed to be HIV positive from the doctor’s report obtained by the police.
Others were still receiving treatment at the hospital as a result of various degrees of injuries sustained as a result of their defilement, Katsina said.
One of the suspects was found to have defiled 10 boys in an area in Kano metropolis, while some were found to have infected their victims with HIV/AIDS, he added.
He blamed the high rate of rape, lesbianism and sodomy cases in the state to lukewarm attitude of parents who did not care about the proper upbringing of their wards.
The commissioner said that the police would ensure that such suspects were prosecuted appropriately so as to serve as lesson to those interested in the criminal acts.
He called on parents to ensure proper upbringing of their children in order to make them useful members of the society.
The suspects were arraigned at Magistrate Courts 18 and 6 located at Norman’s Land in Kano metropolis.