Police has apprehended Innocent Niyitegeka, a 57-year old man, for allegedly defiling a five year old girl.
The suspect who hails from Busanza Cell, Kanombe Sector is currently being held at Kanombe Police Station pending further investigations.
Niyitegeka is alleged to have committed the heinous crime on July 03, and was caught in the act by a resident, while defiling his neighbor’s daughter.
According to the Police, the eyewitness immediately informed police which arrived and arrested the suspect, while the infant was rushed to Kanombe Military Hospital for medical examination and evidence collection.
The Police Spokesperson for Central Region, Superintendent Modeste Mbabazi, condemned the heinous act, noting that communities should fight against sexual violence against children by protecting them against such predators and reporting to authorities in time in order to avail justice.
“Sexual assault is devastating to the physical and mental health of children – and once it has occurred, the child must be rushed for medical examination and evidence collection that will help in the prosecuting the offender,” he said.
Mbabazi added that; “Rwandans have come together to denounce such offenses and other gender-based crimes; therefore, we must continue to denounce defilement and help victims to heal completely. If there are people who are afraid to talk openly about these assaults because they fear society’s perception, they should understand that their silence could lead to more attacks on innocent children.”
As Police intensifies its call to the public to promptly report defilement cases, The head of anti-Gender-based Violence and Child Protection Directorate at Rwanda National Police, Beline Mukamana, recently said that when a child is sexually assaulted, their world is devastated; and help must be availed to them in the quickest time possible if they are to heal completely.
“I urge parents, guardians and the general public to immediately come forward with information to Police in cases of defilement and rape. Police have the ability, skills and knowledge to conduct quality investigations in such cases, but timely information is very crucial,” Mukamana said.
Psychologists say victims of defilement and rape respond differently to the crime; some become dreadfully depressed, while others become very angry.
According to Mukamana, all these emotions are fair responses to sexual assault, and if the victims sense that justice might not take course, they sometimes end up trying to seek for revenge or indulging in other criminal offences.
“If your child is sexually assaulted and you delay to report, chances are, the suspect will attack someone else. Therefore, this evidence that you provide could be the difference between a conviction and another rape on another person,” she said.
Police established a toll free number 3512, where information from the public concerning defilement, rape and other gender-based crimes can be reported so that immediate action can commence.
Important as well, the anti-GBV and child protection department also advises that even though one may have a strong desire to shower after being violated, they must first see a doctor in order to provide fresh evidence to try and convict the defilement or rape suspect.
Available statistics indicate that defilement cases topped Rwanda’s gender-based crime list in 2012, although recorded cases of GBV reduced to 3,444 from 3,585 in 2011, mainly due to increased public awareness campaigns and law enforcement.
Rwanda National Police runs the Isange One Stop Centre, which provides medical, legal and psycho-social services to victims of defilement and other cases of Gender Based Violence (GBV).
Article 191 of the Penal Code punishes defilement with to life imprisonment.
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