The Guardian learnt that the incident occurred at Ogbogoro in Obio/Akpor Local Council of Rivers State, and that the teenager was taken to an uncompleted building in an unknown location and held captive for two days.
It was gathered that Joe and the two young men abducted the girl at about 7:00 p.m. on February 15, while she was on an errand for her mother.
Sources close to the family said the mother and neighbours had gone to Ozuoba police station on the fateful day but the police said the teenager could not be declared wanted, since the 24-hour procedural benchmark for declaring an individual missing had not been met.
According to a source, Joe was arrested by the combined effort of youths and policemen at about 1:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 20, following days of evading arrest.
The survivor’s father, Anele Aleruchi, told journalists: “On February 15, the mother sent her to buy drugs. But Joe met her on the road and asked to show her something but the girl declined, on the grounds that her mother had sent her on an errand. Joe carried the girl, alongside the two other men, covered her face with a cloth, and took her to an uncompleted building, where they kept her for two days.
“After two days, they released her. When the girl emerged, we asked her what happened. She said Joe took her to an uncompleted building, with two other men. She said, there, Joe fingered her and inserted his manhood into her vagina several times. Joe is in Ozuoba police station. I want justice to take place. The girl is 11, approaching 12 years.” He added that the result of a medical examination conducted on the teenager showed penetration.
Reacting, National Coordinator of the Centre for Basic Rights Protection and Accountability Campaign, Prince Wiro, who has been following the matter, asked that the case be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), in line with the procedure for investigating such alleged defilement.
Wiro called for a thorough investigation, saying the suspect should be prosecuted if he is found culpable. Meanwhile, spokesperson for Rivers State Police Command, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, who condirmed the incident, said the suspect has been arrested and transferred to the SCIID for discreet investigation.
