State Police Command for allegedly beating her husband’s three-year-old
niece, Deborah Bassey, to death.
she vomited and defecated on herself.The incident occurred at Ijaiye
Ojokoro area of the state on July 22, 2013.
“The victim (Deborah) lost her mother in 2010. Early this year,
Deborah’s father was evicted from his home and he decided to send
Deborah and his second child to go and stay with his brother, Vincent,
until he settles down.“Deborah and her nine-year-old sister
were living with Vincent and his wife, Rebecca, in a one-room apartment
at Powerline, Jankara, Ijaiye Ojokoro. However, Rebecca was always
maltreating the two children.”
According to police investigations, on the day of the incident, Deborah woke up around 5.30am with a high temperature.
The
three-year-old girl was said to have started vomiting and defecating
soon after. This was said to have angered Rebecca, who instead of
administering treatment to the child, decided to beat her up.
A
police source said, “In the process of beating the girl, the suspect
pushed her and she fell, hitting her head against the edge of a wooden
chair in the room.”The impact of her hitting her head
against the edge of the wooden chair caused her to start bleeding. Some
neighbours rushed her to Ahmadiyya Hospital, where she was referred to
Orile Agege General Hospital where she later died.
A woman leader in
the area, Kudirat Ogunseyi, was said to have reported the matter to
Ijaye Ojokoro Police Division after which the suspect was arrested.
Some
neighbours, in their statements at the police station, described the
suspect as a hot-tempered woman, who was fond of beating the children.
“The
way that woman beats up the children was very worrying to the extent
that the landlord had threatened to evict them,” one of the statements
reads.
“I was not at home when the incident happened. I am a photographer
during daytime but I work as a vigilante group member. So I hardly
sleep at home,” he said.
had only pushed Deborah and she hit her head against the chair.
“I am a housewife and I have a 10-month-old baby. I did not mean to
kill her (Deborah). I only pushed her because she vomited and defecated
on the floor. I was only trying to correct her. It was not deliberate. I
am a mother too and I know how I would feel if my son was killed,” she
said.
that if other wounds were found on other parts of the victim’s body, it
would prove that the victim was indeed tortured before her death.