A 24-year-old man, Usman Mohammed Iyal, has confessed to Police personnel how he raped a 16-year-old girl and threw her into a well at Ambassadors Quarters, Katsina State.
In his confessional statement, the suspect said his action was to save his identity. Iyal stated, “Because I didn’t want her to expose me.”
He made the confession during his parade alongside that of other suspects at the Katsina State Police Command headquarters before newsmen on Tuesday evening.
The suspect’s brutal actions were thwarted when the police launched a swift investigation and rescue operation aimed at saving the victim from the well unharmed.
Arewa PUNCH gathered that the incident occurred on September 27, 2024, when the victim was sent on an errand by her mother.
According to the state Police Command Public Relations Officer, ASP Abubakar Sadiq, the suspect, armed with a knife, accosted and threatened the victim, then dragged her into an uncompleted building where he violently assaulted and raped her.
“On September 27th, 2024, at about 1216hrs, the Katsina State Police Command succeeded in arresting a suspected rapist for the brutal assault and attempted murder of a 16-year-old girl in Ambassadors Quarters, Katsina.
“The victim was sent on an errand by her mother when the suspect, one Usman Mohammed Iyal, male, age 24, of Ambassadors quarters, armed with a knife, accosted, threatened, and dragged her into an uncompleted building where he then violently assaulted and raped the victim.
“In a desperate bid to conceal his crime, the suspect threw the victim into a nearby well and hurled stones down the well, with intent to kill the victim.
“Upon the victim’s disappearance, her father, Abdullahi Sabitu, m, reported the incident at the GRA Divisional Police Headquarters, leading to our swift action. An investigation was immediately launched, and successfully, we rescued the victim from the well, and we arrested the suspect.’’
The victim is currently receiving medical attention,” according to Sadiq.
“Similarly, on September 19, 2024, at about 2000 hours, the command arrested Binta Muhammed, age 35, of Lungun Loma quarters, Dutsinma LGA, Katsina State, in connection with a suspected case of cruelty to a child.”
ASP Abubakar Sadiq said “a report was received at the Dutsinma d
Divisional Police Headquarters through one Halima Aliyu of the International Human Rights Commission, Dutsinma Zone, that on the same date, while discharging their duties in the area, they received information that the suspect illegally tied and locked up a two-year-old boy in a room in a cruel manner.
“Upon receipt of the report, the Divisional Police Officer mobilised a team of detectives to the said address, where a search was conducted. The victim, one Abdulmajid Shafi’u, male, age 2, was found hanging on a wall inside a room, tied with a wrapper. He was quickly rescued and rushed to the hospital, where he is receiving medical attention, and subsequently, the suspect was traced and arrested.
“During the investigation, the suspect confessed to the commission of the offence and would soon be charged to court upon the conclusion of the investigation.
“On 25th September, 2024, at about 0545hrs, the command succeeded in arresting the trio of one Sabi’u Hassan, male, age 34, Isiya Salisu, mald, age 30, and one Aliyu Haruna, male, age 20, all of Kofar Durbi Quarters, Katsina, in connection with a suspected case of vandalism and theft.
“While on routine patrol, a team of police operatives, in collaboration with members of the vigilante, intercepted the syndicate around Kofar Durbi quarters, in possession of some quantity of electric armored cable, a sharp pointed iron bar, and a hacksaw reasonably suspected to have been stolen.
“During interrogation, the suspects confessed to the commission of the offence and further mentioned four other suspects now at large as their accomplices.
“Efforts are being intensified to ensure the arrest of the fleeing suspects as the investigation proceeds,” Sadiq disclosed further.
