Man Flogged to Death Over Alleged Rape of 10-Year-Old Girl in Bayelsa Community

 

A 47-year-old man, identified as Mr. Emi Sigah (also simply referred to as Emi), has died after receiving about 40 strokes of the cane in Ekeowe (Ekowe) community, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, following allegations that he raped a 10-year-old girl.

The incident, which occurred on Wednesday, March 26, 2026, has sparked outrage and brief chaos in the riverside community, highlighting tensions between longstanding local traditions and Nigeria’s formal legal system.

According to community sources, the victim (name withheld) was accompanying her aunt to a nearby farm to pluck okra when the suspect allegedly ambushed her while her relative was ahead. He was reportedly caught in the act of molesting the minor in a nearby bush.

Ekeowe community enforces an age-long tradition for cases of rape, viewed as a “sacrilegious act.” The customary punishment requires 10 strokes of the cane from each of the community’s 12 families, totaling 120 lashes, intended as a strong deterrent.

Some residents reportedly offered money—amounts ranging from N15,000 to N50,000—to spare the suspect from the flogging, but the community insisted on upholding the tradition. The suspect collapsed and lost consciousness after enduring roughly 40 strokes (a third of the prescribed penalty) and was confirmed dead on arrival at the community hospital.

His death triggered immediate unrest, with enraged youths flooding the streets and creating pandemonium. Security operatives, including armed soldiers from the Ogboinbiri base, were deployed to restore order. Normalcy has since returned following intervention by a high-powered delegation from the Southern Ijaw Local Government Council, led by the Special Adviser on Security Matters in the absence of the Council Chairman, Mr. Target Segibo, who was attending an APC zonal and national convention outside the state.73558e

The Southern Ijaw LGA Chairman, through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Ayebaitari Easterday, condemned the mob action while expressing strong disapproval of the alleged rape. “As much as the council does not align with the repugnant attempted rape of the minor, the action of the youths is alien,” Easterday stated. “It would have only been commendable if they had reported the matter to security agencies for the law to take its course.”

He added that the council salutes the affected family and the Ekowe community for embracing peace and preventing further escalation.

Four persons, including the youth president of the community, have been arrested in connection with the death and are being held at the Criminal Investigative Department (CID) of the Bayelsa State Police Command in Yenagoa. The body of the deceased has been evacuated by police and council officials from Oporoma (the LGA headquarters) and deposited at the mortuary of the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa.

Efforts to obtain a detailed confirmation from the Bayelsa State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Musa Mohammed, were unsuccessful at the time of reporting, though inquiries were said to be ongoing.