Baridap Needman, 38-year-old, was detained in Yenagoa by the Bayelsa State Police Command for reportedly impregnating his 14-year-old biological daughter.
The 38-year-old suspect, who is from the Ogani Wily Kaira Community in Ogoni, Rivers State, was apprehended after a formal complaint was filed by the State Gender Advocacy organization, Gender Response Initiative Team (GRIT), led by Dise Ogbise Esq.
The GRIT was informed by a concerned neighbor who discovered that the girl was five months pregnant and that the father was responsible for the pregnancy, according to Ogbise and Mrs. Mary Accrah Pekeowei.
The detained father was said to have been fingering his daughter since she was seven years old, but things became worse when the victim’s mother died a few years ago.
The accused father then replaced his deceased wife with his daughter according to the Nigerian Tribune.
While the 14-year-old daughter, who attended Junior Secondary School 3, slept on the bed with her father, he forced her two younger brothers to sleep on the floor.
When the pregnant 14-year-old confessed her love for her father to the officers at the Ekeki Police Station where the case was reported, they were surprised.
The GRIT’s Chairwoman, on the other hand, assured reporters that the advocacy group, in partnership with the Ministry of Women Affairs, would provide psychosocial support to the victim and guarantee that she was adequately cared for until her date of delivery.
She said, “Abortion is not an option and the two brothers have been handed to their family member for proper care. The Girl will be in government custody and she needs to go back to school. Her dream is to be a musician and we will encourage her.”
Mrs. Mary Accrah Pekeowei, who also spoke, urged residents of the state to remain watchful and to report any cases of girl child abuse or molestation to the GRIT and other gender advocacy organisations in the state.
She said, “Members of the public should always speak up and reach out to relevant authorities.”
