Story of How Woman, Tope Ogba Was Allegedly Blindsided By Her Husband’s Atrocities Upon Her Daughters Is A Wake Up Call To Every Mum

It is a crime when the very person who is charged with the duty to protect you turns out to be the one you need to be protected from. This is the horrifying story of Gabriel Ogba, a father who is being held accountable by the authorities for his alleged heinous crime against his 25, 20 and 13 year old daughters, the very children he was supposed to protect.

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The unrepentant man who had denied the allegations apparently, had sworn his helpless daughters to secrecy until the 13-year old who couldn’t bear it any more told her prodding class teacher.

Speaking on Monday at Lagos State Special Offences Court, Ikeja; the distraught mom, Tope Ogba, narrated how her husband, Gabriel allegedly raped their two adult daughters and their 13-year-old sister at their residence in Oke-Ogbe town, Atura bus stop, Badagry, Lagos.

While being led in evidence by the state counsel, K. A. Momoh-Ayokanbi, Tope said she did not notice the sexual molestation, which according to her, had gone on for a number of years until it was revealed by the youngest daughter.

“I did not know what was going on; it was when he molested my third daughter that I got to know about what was going on and I later heard about the sexual act on my older daughters from people outside. When I asked my older daughters about the rumours, they initially denied them; I got to know about the molestation of my third daughter from her teacher, who told me that she saw her (the victim) crying and upon enquiries, she told the teacher that her father was sleeping with her, and when I asked my third daughter about what she told her teacher, she kept mute and was staring at me. I confronted my husband; he said that it was a conspiracy against him by our daughters; I told him that a young child could not come up with such allegations against him. Ever since I confronted him, I have had no peace at home; he used to beat and threaten me. The last atrocity he committed was that he prevented our third daughter from going for a vigil in the church; she’s a twin and he prevented her from going to church. Our second daughter, who is 20 years old, returned home and met her sister crying, but she did not reveal what was wrong.”

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Tope told further that as a result of Gabriel’s actions, their 13-year old daughter was kept in the custody of their pastor but Gabriel continually harassed the pastor to release the girl to him.

Due to the harassment, Gabriel was said to have been reported to the police but he absconded and took two of the children with him. A month later, he aggressively approached his wife at her place of business but she was spared when bystanders protected her from his attack.

She continued:

READ ALSO: “My Stepdad Who Is A Pastor Has Been Raping Me Since I Was 10 And My Mother Knows.”

“When I got home, I didn’t know that he had a hidden agenda to set me ablaze with petrol. When I alighted from the vehicle, he came out from the bush and started hitting me with a stick. I ran to a trader’s kiosk and I noticed that I was soaked in blood; I attempted to call my children on the phone, but he approached me and poured petrol on my body. A bystander rescued me by preventing him from setting me ablaze; I was taken away in a car by the person who helped me who, unknown to me, is a human rights campaigner. We went to the Morogbo Police Station and my husband was arrested and transferred to the Agege Police Station. He was thereafter moved to the Kirikiri Prison. My daughters were taken to a hospital in Ikeja, where it was confirmed that they had been sexually abused.”

Tope, under cross-examination by Gabriel’s counsel, E. N. Obelu, said the children could not speak up about the molestation because their father had threatened them.

After her mom’s testimony, the 13-year-old was brought forward and she also testified against her father. However, the presiding judge, Justice Sururat Soladoye, ordered everyone in the courtroom gallery to leave, because the witness was under-aged.

The case had been adjourned till March 7, 2019.

Credit: ThePunch