Man amputates his nephew’s hand over phone theft

The Gombe State Government said, on Monday, that it had filed charges against a man in the state who amputated the two hands of his nephew, identified only as Adamu, on the allegation that the 12-year-old stole a phone.

The Director of Public Prosecutions in the Gombe State Ministry of Justice, Abubakar Jungudo, told Punch Metro in a telephone interview that the uncle of the amputated child would be prosecuted.

“We are going to prosecute the defendant. We are awaiting the assignment of the case by the Chief Judge of Gombe State. One of the magistrates in Kashere drew my attention to the case, having seen the seriousness of the injury and it was referred to the Gombe State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps,” the DPP said.

In a statement on Monday commemorating Childen’s Day, the Vice Chairperson of the Nigerian Bar Association, Gombe branch, Mwalin Abdu, had decried the case of Adamu whose two hands were amputated over alleged phone theft in the Akko Local Government Area of the state.

Abdu, who doubles as Chairperson, Human Rights Committee of the NBA, condemned the spate of child abuse in a press statement she titled, ‘Protecting our future: Urgent action needed on child protection in Gombe State.’

She called on the authorities to implement the Child Protection Law to tackle cases of abuse, stressing the need for concerted efforts towards combating dastardly acts against minors.