Blame Parents, Guardians for Upsurge in Underage Commercial Sex Workers – Anambra Police Boss

By Julie Sylvia

Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, Mr Echeng Echeng has blamed parents and guardians for the increasing number of young girls operating as commercial sex workers in the state.
Echeng stated this while parading 35 underaged commercial sex workers at the Police Area Command, Onitsha on Wednesday.

The Anambra police boss disclosed that the prostitutes were arrested at Gally-Gally hotel, Umusiome Nkpor in Idemili North local government area of the state. According to him, the owner of the hotel fled when police operatives led by the Onitsha Police Area Commander, Mr. John Obuagbaka, stormed the facility.

He, however, expressed dissatisfaction that parents and guardians were not playing their role as expected in raising their children, a development he argued, resulted in many young girls sleeping with men in exchange for money.

“Parents should learn how to monitor the activities of their Wards/Children and the company they keep. These children who came from different states that include, Anambra, Delta, Rivers, Enugu, Ebonyi, and Benue, among others were lured into the prostitution business because their parents were not able to monitor the company they keep”, he advised.

The Commissioner who spoke through the State Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Mr. Tochukwu Ikenga, further disclosed that four out of the 35 arrested sex workers were found to be pregnant.

“The manager of the hotel and others are still at run but we arrested seven others (the coordinators) that received the girls on behalf of the owner of the hotel including his Assistant, Mrs.Ifeoma Udoh from Abia State and two security men Chidera Alaka and Chidiebere Alaka, who ensure these girls did not run away once they come into the hotel”

According to the police report, items recovered from the facility during the raid included three pump action guns, seven live cartridges and the N877,500 cash plus two registers where names and money collected from the girls after sleeping with each men were written.

Mr Echeng Echeng also disclosed that the rescued girls would be “handed over to the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking In Persons(NAPTIP) for proper rehabilitation, reformation and integration while the three suspect, the two security men and the manager will be charged to court.”

One of the victim who gave her name as Sochima Uchendu, 17 years, from Umuawulu, Awka South said that she was chased out of their house by her parents who told her to go and look for something to be doing.

“Then I moved and rented a house from where I met a young man who encouraged me to follow him to where I will be employed as a sales girl which I agreed.

“Then the young man took me to this Hotel one sunday on February this year and handed me over to the owner of the hotel Mrs Jessica (the manager) and instructed me that she is my madam,who I will be serving and left.

“The Woman told me that I will not leave until I make money for her by sleeping with men every hour of the day unless they (the men) didn’t come, I slept with 10-15 men on ordinary days apart from Sundays I slept with up to 15 or more because it is the busiest day.

“Each of the men paid N1000, so I made up to N10,000 or more on ordinary days and up to N30,000 or more on Sundays as long as men were coming.

“I was among those that were arrested because I decided not to run when we sighted the team of policemen, I want to come out of this to start a skill if I can be helped.

Similarly, another victim, Blessing Isaac,15 years from Warri, Delta State said that she slept with 20 men every day and on Sunday up to 25 or more.

According to her, we work all the time, the place was always busy with men trooping in and out, then at the end of every day, we handed all the money being realised to the manager or the assistant.

Another victim, Ezinne Young Ufele, 13 years from Imo State, said that “I was there through my friend, Nneka who before bringing me to the place, advised me that money is there, that I will like the work. On getting there, I saw what the work was all about, so I decided to run away but you will never because the Security men were always there and if they noticed your plan, you will be reported to the manager who will deal with you mercilessly, we were being flogged or punished.

“If you become pregnant, the manager or the cordinators will ask you whether to have the baby or to abort it. If you decide to abort, better for them because you will very soon go back to your work.

”But if you decide to have the baby, after delivery they sell the baby and have the money, times they drove the pregnant ones out of the place because you were no longer important by not making money, she said”.