Macdonald Okpara, a trader at the popular Ladipo Auto Spare-parts Market in Lagos, is currently furnishing operatives of the Lagos State Police Command with details of how he engaged in sexual activities with a 16-year-old secondary school boy, a development that points to the perversive tendency of gay practice in Nigeria.
Recall that Goodluck Jonathan, former Nigerian President, against all pressures from the international community, particularly the United Kingdom and the United States, signed a bill not only banning the activities of same sex relationship in Nigeria, but making it an offence with stiff penalties, including 14-year jail term.
Regardless, Okpara, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Leuven Empire Hotel and Suites, Ejigbo, Lagos, on Thursday told operatives of the Zone 2 Police Command in Lagos that he actually had sex with the young lad, but swore that he never used him for ritual purposes.
The revelation is coming against the backdrop of complaints by Edozie Christian, the boy’s father, also a motor spare parts dealer at Ladipo market, that Okeke lured his son and four other teenagers to his hotel, where he sodomised them and warned them that they would die if they revealed the incident to anyone.
Edozie’s, report of the incident to the police, le to the arrest of the suspect, who told the police in a video that has now gone viral: “I swear with my life, that it is only sex that I had with him (Chiagoziem), that I never used him for any ritual. I swear in the name of my late parents that are in the grave, I swear with my children that I never did anything ritual. It was just sex.
Umma Ayuba, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), and spokesman of the zone, told reporters at its Onikan headquarters that the suspect was being charged for the offence of unlawful carnal knowledge of a 16-year-old boy, which constituted an act against the order of nature.
Ayuba in a statement, gave details of how the police had moved in after the distraught father of the victim, followed up his initial complaint with a petition dated January 23, to Adegoke Fayoade, Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), in charge of the zone, urging him to look into the matter and bring the suspect to book.
Part of the police statement on the matter, read: “The petition alleged that the suspect engaged in unlawful sexual acts with the minor. Upon receipt of the petition, Fayoade assigned CSP. Bangajiya Uba to conduct a discreet investigation into the matter.
“The victim, initially fearful of speaking out due to threats allegedly made by the suspect, confided in his mother. He recounted that the suspect warned him that disclosing the incident would result in him losing his sanity.
“The victim narrated how the suspect had taken him from the hotel in his vehicle to his residence at No. 4B, Oshoba Street, Akowonjo-Egbeda, Lagos, where he was forcefully subjected to unlawful sexual acts. Following the incident, the suspect allegedly provided the victim with a bottle of Lucozade Boost and N5,000 cash. Upon this revelation, the victim’s parents reported the matter to the Isheri-Osun Police Division.
“Seeing that the accused was seeking to evade justice, the victim’s father escalated the matter to the Zone 2 Command Headquarters, where the hotelier was subsequently apprehended. To ascertain the veracity of the claims, the victim underwent medical examination at Mirabel Medical Centre. A key witness, a close friend of the victim who was present at the hotel during the incident, has corroborated the allegations, further substantiating the victim’s account.
“This friend confirmed that the suspect had been engaging in unlawful acts with the victim and had also attempted a similar act with him, which he resisted. He further presented recorded telephone conversations, chat histories, and video evidence filmed by the victim within the suspect’s residence using the suspect’s own phone.
“Initially, the suspect denied knowing the victim. However, when confronted with evidence, he admitted to taking him to his residence. The suspect allegedly threatened the victim with psychological harm should he reveal the incident, and since making his confession, the victim has exhibited signs of mental distress.”
The police spokesman, who said the investigation also exposed unprofessional conduct by the initial Investigating Police Officer, accused those in charge at that stage of tampering with the case file by removing a crucial witness statement before transferring it to the Zone 2 Command Headquarters.
“The IPO has since been detained and is undergoing disciplinary procedures. Contrary to certain media reports, the medical report from Mirabel Medical Centre remains authentic and has not been tampered with in anyway,” she said, adding that the victim was currently undergoing medical treatment and that the suspect would subsequently face formal charges in court.