Police in Lagos, are currently investigating the death of a Lagos resident, who died of suicide after he was accused of raping his neighbour’s daughter.
The deceased, simply identified as Kayode, was said to be accused of raping the daughter twice before he reportedly died of suicide.
They were all residents of at their compound in the Oja-Amukoko area of Lagos State.
According to reports, the victim’s mother, who has been suffering from stroke, was taken to the Ikorodu area of Lagos for treatment.
The victim, who was put under the care of the Kayode at home, allegedly took advantage of her.
Her father said she accused Kayode of raping her twice and also seized her phone to prevent her from informing her family members.
He said, “My daughter stays with her mother, as both of us are no longer together. My ex-wife had been suffering from a stroke and from what we gathered, she had a neighbour, Kayode, who had been assisting to take care of her.
“But when my ex-wife’s sickness worsened, she was taken to Ikorodu for treatment and her daughter also followed her. As time went on, the neighbour had to go there to bring my daughter back to her mother’s house around Campus, Amukoko, so she could continue schooling.
“But she suddenly left her mother’s place and came to my place on Ojo Road. She said she wanted to continue staying with me till her mother recovered. About 20 minutes after she came, Kayode also came to my place and started saying he knew my daughter’s behaviour better than I did.
“He said if she was no longer staying at her mother’s house, he would have to return her to her mother in Ikorodu since he was the one who brought her home. He also said she came to stay at my place because she wanted freedom to go out and that he never had any agreement with her mother that she would be staying with me.”
According to the victim’s father, after consulting with his ex-wife, he allowed Kayode to take his daughter back home but a few days later, he received a call from his ex-wife’s younger brother, who told him to rush to his ex-wife’s house to rescue his daughter.
He said, “I quickly rushed there, but I didn’t meet her at home. I called my ex-wife’s younger brother and he said he would soon join me at the place.
“After a few minutes, I saw my daughter and she informed me that Kayode raped her. She said she could not sleep alone in her mother’s apartment and that when she slept at Kayode’s apartment, he raped her twice and seized her phone.
“It was when she told Kayode that she wanted to contact her mum that he released his phone to her and instead of calling her mum, she used that opportunity to text her mum’s younger brother.
“So, we went to a police station and she explained to the policemen who said they could not hear only our side of the story. We went to pick up Kayode, but didn’t meet him at home. The policemen then directed us to do a medical test at Orege General Hospital. We were also asked to return the following day as they searched for him.
“The following day, I received a call that Kayode drank insecticide and died. They found him in the backyard of their house and rushed him to a hospital, where he was confirmed dead.”
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, confirming the incident said that Kayode’s brother reported to the command that he committed suicide.
He said, “The father of the girl, 16, reported that his wife’s co-tenant, Kayode, 41, defiled his daughter. After the report was made, policemen were detailed to arrest the suspect, but he was not seen.
“The investigation was ongoing when the suspect’s brother came to the station to report that Kayode committed suicide by drinking a substance suspected to be insecticide. The corpse was recovered but later released to the family for burial in accordance with Islamic rites.”
