Rights Group Demands Justice for Rape Victim

The alleged sexual assault of a woman accused of being part of a “one chance” robbery syndicate has triggered fresh calls for an end to mob justice and the unlawful punishment of criminal suspects in Rivers State.

Human rights activist and National Coordinator of the Centre for Basic Rights Protection and Accountability Campaign, Prince Wiro, has condemned the alleged rape and public humiliation of the woman, insisting that those captured in a viral video assaulting her must be identified, arrested and prosecuted.

The woman was reportedly apprehended alongside other suspects around the Rumuosi–Rumuekini axis of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the state.

A video circulating online showed the woman stripped naked and surrounded by several men.

Some of the men were allegedly seen sexually assaulting her before the arrival of police officers.

The incident has generated outrage, with Wiro describing the alleged assault as a separate criminal act that could not be justified by the allegations against the woman.

According to him, the fact that a person is suspected of committing a crime does not give members of the public the right to subject such an individual to torture, sexual violence or other forms of degrading treatment.

Wiro said the alleged conduct of the men in the video amounted to rape under the Rivers State Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law.

He explained that Section 2 of the law recognises unlawful penetration involving any part of the body, including fingers, where such penetration occurs without consent.

“There is absolutely no justification for such actions, and there is no nexus between the alleged crime committed by the female suspect and the sexual assault inflicted on her,” he said.

The activist said he recognised the serious consequences of “one chance” robberies, which have reportedly left victims dispossessed of valuables and, in some cases, dead.

However, he argued that the seriousness of the alleged offence could not provide legal justification for members of the public to take the law into their own hands.

Wiro described those allegedly involved in the sexual assault as “sexual predators” who should face criminal prosecution if investigations establish their involvement.

He also raised concerns over what he described as a gender dimension to the incident, questioning why the female suspect was allegedly stripped and sexually assaulted while the male suspects arrested alongside her were not subjected to similar treatment.

The rights activist therefore called on the Rivers State Police Command to identify everyone captured in the video, arrest them and commence appropriate prosecution.

He stressed that the woman and other suspects accused of involvement in the alleged robbery syndicate remained entitled to the presumption of innocence until convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction.

Wiro said prosecuting the alleged attackers would also send a strong message that members of the public could not exploit accusations of criminality as an excuse to assault, torture, humiliate or sexually violate suspects.

He condemned the growing practice of members of the public physically assaulting suspected criminals, forcing them to perform humiliating acts, recording the incidents and circulating the footage on social media.

According to him, such acts not only violate fundamental human rights but could also amount to criminal offences in their own right.

He urged the police to investigate and prosecute individuals found to be involved in such abuses.

The call comes against the backdrop of an earlier warning by the Rivers State Police Command against jungle justice and mob action.

In June, the Command’s spokesperson, ASP Agabe Blessing Kaborlo, condemned the mob attack on a woman, Maria Kobara, who was falsely accused of kidnapping a 12-year-old child on Owo Street, Mile 3, Diobu, Port Harcourt.

Kaborlo urged members of the public to report suspected criminal activities to the police rather than taking the law into their own hands.

She warned that the Command would not tolerate mob action or jungle justice, stressing that individuals or groups involved in such acts would face the full weight of the law.