A 51-year-old herbalist, Francis Aju, yesterday told journalists that he had to accept rape allegation levelled against him due to severe torture by police operatives.
The suspect was among those arrested for various crimes and paraded by the State Commissioner of Police, John Babatude Kokumo, on Wednesday.
Kokumo said the suspects would be charged to court as soon as investigation was completed.
It was gathered that the suspect allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl who was brought to him for healing by her father identified as Kenneth at Uromi, in Esan North West Local Government of Edo State.
But the suspect, in an interview with journalists denied the allegation saying he owned up to the allegation due to severe police torture.
He said, “I am a herbalist, her father Kenneth came to my house that his daughter is not well again and that I should help her the way I used to help her before. So I asked him to bring her for treatment.
“We then agreed on N80,000 fee, he paid N50,000 and left. We met again and he gave me N15,000 and promised to pay the balance later. But the next day, he came back, saying that I raped his daughter the previous day while applying the medicine on her. Then I said but you were present when I applied it on her or is it because you don’t want to pay the balance of the money. We argued and he left.
“After three days, he brought police to arrest me. I told them it was all lie before I was transferred to the state headquarters.”
He further explained: “I told them that I didn’t rape her. I bathe her the first day in the presence of her father but the police started beating me saying I should own up to the allegation.
“My pair of trousers got torn at the station after too much beating by the police. They were beating me saying I should accept that I raped the girl.
“The beating was too much and when I can’t bear it, I said I did it so that they will leave me. They use stick and back of cutlass on me. I can’t even hear well because of the beating,” he claimed.
