17-year-old girl, who travelled 210kms to meet man she knew on Facebook, defiled… by 3 men

The mother of a 17-year-old girl, who was allegedly defiled by three men in separate occasions in early June, has urged police to arrest and prosecute her daughter’s sexual abusers.

The aggrieved
mother, who hails from Homa Bay County, said that on Friday, June 5 her teenage
daughter, who lives with her aunt in Mbita, Homa Bay County, called to say she
(daughter) would be visiting her (mother) later that day. However, she did not
get home. Her phone had been switched off later Friday evening.

“My 17-year-old
daughter stays with her aunt, who lives in Mbita. She (daughter) told me that
she would come home on Friday, June 5. When I called her later Friday to
inquire, why she had taken long to arrive home, she said I shouldn’t worry, and
that she’d be home soon. In the evening, her phone line was unreachable. I did
not know where she had gone to, or what had happened to her,” said the minor’s
mother.

“On Tuesday, June 9, I received a call from a police officer attached to Mbale Police Station. The cop asked me to go to the station because my daughter was seriously ill. I was shocked; I did not know how she got to Mbale in Vihiga County, a place that I, personally, had never set foot in. I was told that she met one of her defilers on Facebook.”

The girl, in her
report to police, said she had known one of the defilers — identified only as
Vincent — on Facebook, and that he had invited her to his home in Mbale, a
distance of 210 kilometers from Mbita.

“He told me to use
my money to travel to his place, and that he will refund once I get there,” she
said.

While in Mbale, the
host, Vincent, allegedly defiled her and kicked her out of his house without
giving her money to travel back home.

“While stranded, I
met a boda boda rider, who promised to provide me with somewhere to shelter for
the night. He further said that the following day, he will take me to Kisumu,
where I will board a bus home. He took me to a lodging facility in Kakamega,
where he defiled and stole my phone.

“On returning to Mbale, I met yet another man, who took me to Vincent’s place. We found the door had been locked. The then-curfew cut-off hour of 7pm had clocked. So, the man told me he would take me to his place, where I would spend the night. While at his home, he defiled me and kicked me out the following morning,” she said.

The girl’s mother
has urged authorities to ensure her daughter gets justice.

“The person who
invited her to Mbale should be arrested and prosecuted,” said the victim’s
parent.

The girl, however,
says despite knowing where her Facebook friend lives, she does not know his
full name.

“I met the man on Facebook. His first name is Vincent, and the surname indicates he is of Luhya ethnicity. He invited me to Mbale, Vihiga County so that I know where he stays — Hekima area. I usually stay with my aunt. I told her that I was going to pay mum a visit and return on Sunday, June 14,” she said.

“I want this case to
be pursued to the end. The men hurt me,” she added, revealing that a female
Good Samaritan helped her seek medical treatment and file a report at Mbale
Police Station on June 10.

The teenager has
identified her last defiler as one Davies, who “stays near Mbale High School”.

One of the suspects,
David Nyangweso, has since been arrested and arraigned. He is being held in
custody as investigations into the matter continue.

The victim sat her KCPE exams in 2017, and was staying with her aunt after failing to secure secondary school admission.

(Additional reporting by Abel Amala)