The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC) has raised serious concerns over alleged police mishandling of a child defilement case in Amainyi Nta Autonomous Community, Ihitte Uboma Local Government Area of Imo State.
Okechukwu Nwanguma, Executive Director of RULAAC, said the case exposes yet another troubling failure of the Nigeria Police Force to protect vulnerable children from sexual violence.
A 60-year-old man, Okechukwu Azuagu, is alleged to have defiled a 9-year-old girl, Nmesoma Chiwike. The incident has triggered outrage and fear in the community, with angry youths reportedly on the verge of taking the law into their own hands. What has worsened public anger, however, is the allegation that police “soft-pedalled” on the matter.
Community leaders claim the suspect was granted bail almost immediately, despite pleas from the victim’s parents, FIDA, and human rights groups for urgent and diligent prosecution. Instead of decisive action, police are accused of delays and reluctance, raising fears that the case may have been compromised.
Nwanguma said the police attitude reinforces a widespread perception that sexual offences against children are often trivialised, negotiated, or buried by corrupt officers. He emphasised that defilement is not a private dispute but a crime against the State, punishable by life imprisonment under the VAPP Act, Child’s Rights Act, and other Nigerian laws. Such cases cannot be withdrawn or settled by families or community leaders, he added.
According to him, police complicity in sexual violence cases has devastating consequences. Offenders return to the community feeling untouchable, more children become targets, families lose faith in the justice system and stop reporting cases, and communities resort to self-help, fueling chaos and violence.
Survivors, he noted, are traumatised again when the very institution meant to protect them becomes another source of harm.
In response to growing concerns about a potential cover-up, the community has petitioned the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 9, Umuahia, seeking intervention.
RULAAC is urging the Imo State Police Command to salvage public trust by reassigning the case to an impartial investigative team, securing all medical, forensic, and witness evidence, charging the suspect promptly, and disciplining any officer found to have compromised or obstructed justice.
Nwanguma stressed that there must be zero tolerance for bribery, intimidation of survivors, or manipulation of evidence.
“A society that cannot protect its children has already failed,” he said. “A 9-year-old girl deserves justice. The community deserves safety. And the State has an obligation, legal and moral, to ensure justice is neither sold nor silenced.”
He said the Imo State Police Command must rise to its duty, adding, “Nigeria is watching.”
