Four armed men on Thursday raped a 22-year old woman (names withheld) to coma at Cemetery Road in Warri, Delta state. The whole episode was also recorded by the rapists with a BlackBerry phone.
The victim was unlucky to have boarded a taxi cab with four male passengers from Odion road to her residence on Aguowe Street, Off Mac-Demot road in the oil city.
After she had boarded, the driver of the taxi, to her chagrin, suddenly took a different turn towards Cemetery Road, and then the men pounced on her.
Attempt by the victim to put up some resistance didn’t succeed, as one of the rapists drew a dagger, while others brandished other dangerous weapons, including guns, and threatened to kill her should she raise any alarm.
They thereafter drove her to an uncompleted building in the locality (Cemetery Road) where they took turns on her and left her in a state of coma.
Luck, however, ran out on them after a tip-off and men of Quick Response Squad of the Delta State Police Command in Warri, swooped on them, arresting one Tejiri Akpofure, Ogbor Seih and Great Obrakpo all of Nos. 24, 64 and 66, Cemetery Road, Warri.
The new Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the command, Famous Ajieh, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) who confirmed the arrests in Asaba yesterday, said the command has gone out with full force to arrest the fleeing member of the gang, one Stephen Ebeme.
Ajieh said the arrested suspects have confessed to the crime, adding that one BlackBerry phone used by the suspects in recording the rape action was recovered.
While he assured that the suspects would soon be charged to court, he informed that three suspected murderers / kidnappers including one Ola Ikwueke, Ikechukwu Uwaguna and David Evjouke, were in custody.
The suspects, according to him, allegedly killed one Emmanuel Chukwunolu who refused to be kidnapped two days to Christmas Day at Ebeneku, Ndokwa West Local Government Area of the state.
While the PPRO said they have been placed under serious interrogation on their involvement in a bid to nab other members of the kidnap syndicate, the raped girl is recuperating at an undisclosed clinic in Warri.