The parents of a schoolgirl, Bilikisu Oseni, are in distress after she left her mother’s shop in the Odogunyan, Ikorodu area of Lagos State, without returning home.
The 14-year-old was reported to have left the shop with a boyfriend, identified only as Wahis, on Sunday, June 24, 2018.
The parents of a schoolgirl, Bilikisu Oseni, are in distress after she left her mother’s shop in the Odogunyan, Ikorodu area of Lagos State, without returning home.
The 14-year-old was reported to have left the shop with a boyfriend, identified only as Wahis, on Sunday, June 24, 2018.
Wahis, a motor boy, had reportedly taken the victim to his apartment on Igbosoro Road, Ikorodu, but the Senior Secondary School one pupil had yet to be seen since then.
The victim’s mother, Fausatu Oseni, said she had travelled to Ogun State for a family function when her daughter followed the suspect.
She said, “Last Friday, I travelled to Ago Iwoye, Ogun State, for a family function. On Sunday, a customer called me that she wanted to grind pepper and buy some other things at my shop in Odogunyan.
“I told my younger sister, who was watching over my children, to call Bilikisu to open the shop and sell the goods to the customer. About 30 minutes after the customer left, I called my sister again on the telephone and asked if my daughter had closed the shop, but she said no. I asked to speak with her on the telephone and ordered her to close the shop and go to church.
“When I called back later, she told me she was still packing the goods. I felt uneasy where I was and told my host that I needed to leave immediately to look after my children.”
She said she arrived at the house that evening and was surprised that her daughter was not at home.
The mother of three said when she enquired from her sister, she was told that the 14-year-old left with her boyfriend.
“My sister said she (Bilikisu) went out with Wahis on a motorcycle. I was alarmed when it was getting dark and she did not return home.
“I raised a search party and we went round the area without seeing my daughter. After the fruitless search, we were advised to report to the police at the Orofo Police Station, which we did on Monday.
“We got the telephone number of Wahis from one of his friends and when we called him, he denied knowing Bilikisu’s whereabouts. I do not know his relationship with my daughter.
“My telephone battery was low and I went to charge it in a shop when I ran into him. I asked him to produce my daughter, but he fled the shop with the assistance of his friends,” she added.
Fausatu explained that she got support from her sister and husband and trailed the suspect to another place where he was relaxing.
“My sister ran after him, shouting ‘thief, thief,’ but nobody helped us to apprehend him. We then reported at the Shagamu Road Police Station and two policewomen followed us to his workplace where he was eventually arrested,” she added.
The police were reported to have granted bail to the 20-year-old after his relatives promised that he would produce Bilikisu.
Attached to the bail was also a seven day ultimatum to return the victim to her parents.
The suspect, who spoke to PUNCH Metro on Friday, said he had lost his peace since the incident happened, adding that he did not know his lover’s whereabouts.
The Ibadan, Oyo State indigene, lamented that his family members were also worried about Bilikisu’s whereabouts.
He said he believed that she was in another lover’s house.
Wahis said, “On Sunday, I went to pick her from the shop on a motorcycle. I took her to know my new apartment on Igbosoro Road.
“As she got to my place, I got a call that her mother had started complaining and was looking for her. I put her on a motorcycle to return to her mother; I never knew she did not get home. If I had known this would happen, I would have asked her to wait a little at my place or take her to their house myself.
“Some people said they sighted her at Agodo around 1pm. One of her friends, Gloria, told me that she made mention of a boyfriend who stayed alone in the Odogunyan area. I believe she is afraid that her mother will beat her up and she went to stay with the boyfriend. She must be around Odogunyan.
“We started dating in January 2018. The police have given me till Wednesday to produce her and I don’t know where else to go. My mother has cried endlessly over this. I have suffered seriously, including police torture. I have spent a lot of money to look for her. I can’t eat or sleep.”
The state Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Chike Oti, could not be reached for comment as of the time of filing this report on Sunday.
