The Ondo State Police Command on Tuesday said it had launched a manhunt for a middle-aged man who allegedly raped a 12-year-old girl in Igbokoda, the headquarters of the Ilaje Local Government Area of the state.

The suspect, whose identity was not revealed, allegedly raped the victim who was hawking snacks.

The suspect allegedly lured the victim into an uncompleted building in the town where he allegedly perpetrated the act.The suspect, who was said to have hailed from Kebbi State, went into hiding and later travelled out of the state.

Seeking justice, the mother of the victim who identified herself simply as Joy, told journalists in Akure on Tuesday that the incident happened on May 19, 2023.

She called on security agencies to assist her family in apprehending the fleeing suspect.

She said, “When my daughter arrived from school on this fateful day, she told me to allow her hawk puff-puff because we needed some money for her school fees. She later left home to hawk again. When it was getting late, I became apprehensive when I didn’t see her.

“A few minutes before 7pm, she came back home but immediately I saw her, I knew something was wrong because she looked exhausted. While she was trying to explain to me what happened to her, she fainted. She was revived at the hospital.”

The distraught mother said it was when the girl woke up that she narrated how she was raped.

She said the case was reported to the police and efforts made to arrest the suspect did not yield results as he was said to have left the town for Kebbi State.

When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mrs Funmi Odunlami, said the command had launched

a manhunt for the suspect and promised that justice would be served immediately after the suspect is brought back and investigations concluded.

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