How Police Secretly Retired Officer Accused Of Raping Teenager Inside Station
The Deputy Superintendent of Police at the Ogudu Police Station in Lagos State, Owolabi Akinlolu, accused of raping a 17-year-old girl in his office at the division, was allegedly retired from service in secrecy before his case was brought to court on Tuesday.
The survivor’s mother, Mrs Aramide Olupona, had earlier, accused the police of attempting to cover up the case, disclosing that the suspect’s wife and family had pleaded with her to drop the charges, claiming Akinlolu was due to retire in December.
However, sources familiar with the investigation accused the Nigeria Police Force of deliberately prolonging both the probe and the suspect’s arraignment until after his scheduled retirement in December 2024, allegedly to grant him a soft landing.
Akinlolu, on June 29, 2024, allegedly summoned the victim, claiming that the suspect who had stolen her phone two weeks earlier had been apprehended.
However, upon her arrival at the police station, the senior officer allegedly locked his office door and raped her.
An insider familiar with the investigation, on Wednesday, told The Punch that the police “deliberately allowed him to retire from service before initiating his prosecution.”
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The source further revealed that the suspect was not dismissed from the force, stating that the officers handling the case in Lagos argued that “it was beyond the state command’s jurisdiction since the suspect was a senior police officer.”
He said, “They transferred the case to the Force headquarters in Abuja. It was Abuja that gave them directives on the investigation. Now, they are saying the completion of the investigation did not come before December. They are claiming it came after December,” the insider added.
A survivor’s family member (name withheld) made a similar accusation before Magistrate O.O. Fagboun ordered the suspect’s remand at the Kirikiri Maximum Correctional Centre on Tuesday.
Another credible source privy to the matter but who did not want to be mentioned for fear of retribution stated that the suspect allegedly pointed a gun at the survivor’s head before committing the crime, accusing the police of not mentioning it in the charges.
A document obtained by our correspondent on Wednesday, containing the survivor’s account, corroborated the earlier claim.
“We are supposed to be seeing attempted murder or a threat to life because the man allegedly defiled the girl at gunpoint. It appears the police deliberately chose to be lenient on one of theirs,” the source lamented.
As of the time this report was filed, no response had been received regarding Akinlolu’s alleged retirement from the Force spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, and the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, who were contacted on Wednesday but had yet to reply.
Olamilekan Adigun is a graduate of Mass Communication with years of experience in journalism embedded in uncovering human interest stories. He also prioritises accuracy and factual reportage of issues.
