The Nigeria Police Force has arrested a woman identified as Chinwendu Onyeneho after allegedly burning her seven-year-old daughter with a hot electric iron as punishment for eating a piece of meat from the pot.
SaharaReporters learnt that Chinwendu was arrested and she is currently being detained at Nigeria Police Area G Command in Lagos State.
The horrifying incident occurred on Thursday night at No. 11 Oshimyemi Street in Ogba area of Lagos and has since sparked widespread outrage and condemnation, with civil rights group, the Take-It-Back Movement, leading the charge for justice.
Sources who spoke to SaharaReporters said the mother accused her daughter of stealing meat while performing a chore and in response, inflicted multiple burns on her using a plugged electric iron.
“She asked her daughter to serve meat to her younger brother, but when she noticed the girl ate from it, she plugged an electric iron and used it to burn her. This happened right before our eyes,” a neighbour who witnessed the incident told SaharaReporters.
Shocked by the brutality of the act, the neighbour confronted the woman, only to be dismissed with arrogance and defiance.
“When I challenged her about why she would do something so wicked to her own child, she told me it was none of my business and dared me to do my worst. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing,” the neighbour added.
Another source, privy to the developing situation, disclosed that Onyeneho initially tried to manipulate the child into silence.
“The woman told the child to say she used the iron to burn herself,” the source said. “It was only after pressure from neighbours and the Take-It-Back Movement that the truth started to come out.”
The Take-It-Back Movement swiftly alerted the Area G Command of the Nigeria Police Force, demanding the woman’s arrest.
The Area Commander, ACP Faniyi Abayomi, also told SaharaReporters on Friday morning that the case was being handled by the appropriate department responsible for juvenile and domestic abuse matters.
“We’ve received the complaint, and the neighbour is currently here with us making a formal statement. The department handling child welfare is on it,” ACP Abayomi stated.
© SaharaReporters
