Samaila has, earlier in the month, reported the assault to the Bauchi State Police Command.
The suspect, Muazu, was arrested and released within 24 hours.
However, Samaila, the complainant, was detained on allegations that he was “aiding and abetting” kidnapping.
His wife and victim of the sexual assault, who spoke to journalists in Bauchi, yesterday, accused the Commissioner of Police, Auwal Mohammed, of failing to investigate her case, instead arresting her husband swiftly on allegation of defamation based on Muazu’s complaint.
The mother of two claimed that the police failed to investigate her complaint, which Muazu allegedly perpetrated in the presence of her two children.
According to her, while the police arrested and detained her husband, they granted her alleged sexual assailant bail within 24 hours.
She expressed regret that the police failed to respond to her complaint but arrested and detained her husband at the request of the suspect for six days.
She said the assault and arrest of her husband had further worsened her family’s financial situation.
To get justice, the victim approached a human rights civil society organisation, African Child Development and Human Rights Protection, in Bauchi.
The organisation said it had petitioned the Commissioner of Police (CP) to re-arrest the suspect to no avail.
Founder of the rights group, Muhammed Alkassim, berated the CP for failing to investigate a crime of rape.
He said: “The victim is crying for help and justice. We condemn the failure of the Commissioner of Police, Bauchi State Command, to investigate the case of alleged sexual assault. It is important to state categorically that the police have derailed from the general and specific objective of the establishment of the newly established Police Act as provided under Section 1 and 2 of the same Act.
Reacting, the command, through its spokesperson, Ahmed Wakil, said the CP, on receipt of the petition, directed his deputy in the state Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) to investigate the matter.
He said: “The case was investigated and the two lawyers that raised the petition, Nazir Umar and Aliyu Mohammed, came to the criminal department because of the magnitude of case. It is a capital offence. An investigation is still ongoing, and the outcome of the investigation will be revealed to the public.”
On the arrest of the victim’s husband, Wakil said he has been charged to court on allegation of criminal defamation.
“He was also charged for aiding and abetting kidnapping. The command received petition from Nazir Umar and Co chambers on behalf of their client, Sani Mauzu, against Yusuf Samiala. And based on that, the suspect (the sexual assault victim’s husband) was arrested,” he added.
