A 30-year-old man, Nurudeen Owolabi, was on Wednesday arrested by the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly raping a 12-year-old pupil, simply identified as Ngozi in the Bariga area of the state and claimed it wasn't his fault as the devil made him do it.

Owolabi who resides in the same neighbourhood with the parents of the victim was said to have tricked her into his apartment on Alhaji Yinu Street, Bariga and raped her during the weekend. The Ilorin, Kwara State indigene reportedly gave his victim N200 and warned her not to tell anybody about what happened.

However that was not the whole truth as Punch gathered that the victim's mother was said to have noticed a whitish substance on her private part. She engaged Ngozi in a 'deep' chat before she opened up on the incident. A police source said the case was immediately reported to the police, leading to the arrest of the suspected rapist.

The source said, "The girl's mother was away; her grandmother sent her on an errand and the suspect tricked her into his room, where he raped her. "When the girl's mother returned, she noticed that Ngozi's pants were wet and she became suspicious. She asked her what happened to her, and she said it was Owolabi that raped her.

"The suspect was arrested and taken to the Bariga Police Station and the case was transferred to the Gender Office, Lagos State Police Command Headquarters, Ikeja. Subsequently, Ngozi was taken to the Mirabel Centre at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, where series of tests were conducted on her and reports say the results showed that her hymen had been broken.

The abused teenager, a primary 5 pupil, said, "I went to buy rice and I passed through Brother Nuru's (Owolabi) house. He called me and dragged me inside his room; he removed my gown and my pants and raped me. "He begged me not to tell anybody. I did not tell my mother because I was afraid she would beat me."

In his confession, the suspect said he was formerly dating the victim's sister before he got another girlfriend. He said, "I had a girlfriend on my street, who is about 21 years old and anytime she came to my apartment, I would sleep with her and pay her N500. But for about a month, she didn't come. I saw her (the victim) passing by and I called her to come in.

'I had sex with her. I then gave her N200. Later, her mother barged into my house and started crying that I wanted to destroy her daughter's life. "It wasn't my fault; the devil made me do it," Owolabi added. When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, SP Dolapo Badmos, confirmed the report. Badmos warned pedophiles to change their ways.

She said, "The Lagos State Police Command will not spare rapists. "We want to appeal to parents of victims to speak up and report to the nearest police station. "They must also keep watchful eyes on their children to protect them from sexual abuse," the PPRO added.