Saleem Ibrahim, a student at the University of Maiduguri, allegedly assaulted 21-year-old Hauwa Abatcha Ngala after she rejected his love proposal.
The incident, which occurred on Monday, February 26, 2024, has sent shockwaves through the campus, highlighting the dangers of obsession and coercion in relationships.
According to sources close to the victim, Saleem had been persistently pursuing Hauwa, despite her clear lack of romantic interest in him.
Despite her repeated refusals and attempts to distance herself from Saleem, he allegedly continued to pressure her to reciprocate his feelings.
Hauwa, a student at the College of Nursing Sciences in Maiduguri, reportedly endured threats and intimidation from Saleem, who allegedly warned her of dire consequences if she did not comply with his demands for affection.
Despite her firm stance against any romantic involvement with Saleem, the situation escalated to a violent confrontation on the evening of February 26.
He reportedly told her point-blank that she either loved him or she suffered the most-gruesome consequences.
“I can even kill you, and nothing will happen”, Saleem warned her.
On that fateful Monday, around 8:30 p.m., Saleem Ibrahim allegedly violently physically assaulted Hauwa Abatcha Ngala, hitting her hard twice with a club until she fainted, for her refusal to love him. The club had cracked her head to the point of profuse bleeding, requiring immediate medical attention.
Rather than seeking help for her, Saleem reportedly fled the scene, leaving Hauwa at the mercy of her relatives who intervened to save her life.
Following the incident, Hauwa’s relatives promptly notified the authorities, leading to Saleem’s arrest by Joint Task Force civilian volunteers.
He was subsequently handed over to the police at the Gomari Division Office, where he awaits legal proceedings for his alleged actions.
However, on Friday, March 1, 2024, which was three days after the incident and his arrest, the police allegedly released Saleem on the intervention of some politicians, without taking any action expressive of the law taking its due course on him.
Immediately Saleem was released by the police, he went on his Facebook messenger to send Hauwa a Private message moking her, saying “I’m not the type that makes empty threats, anything I decide to do I will do it and nothing will happen. I swear with Allah, it is only the poor you can mess with and go scot free but not a person from an influential background like Saleem.
It is only the poor that don’t possess worldly things that you can succeed to win a case with. If you mess up and succeed with others, I swear with Almighty God you will never succeed because we have the Money, the Security Agencies, Politicians, and Government Officials on our side. But you can only boast of telling your brother. I dire you to continue the case and let’s see who has the monopoly of influence,”said Saleem.
The relatives, frustrated by the action of the police, reportedly again lodged another complaint at the Borno State Police Command Headquarters in Maiduguri, on Saturday March 2, 2024, especially as he had allegedly threatened to kill her and nothing would happen because he is a son of influential people, which infuriated them.
Saleem was consequently re-arrested and kept in police custody for a week, but allegedly released again as the family were told by the police that the Borno State Secretary to the Government, Hon. Bukar Tijjani has ordered for his released and subsequent dismissal of the case without any action taken against him for inflicting serious physical and emotional pain on the victim.
All of a sudden, Hauwa’s relatives reportedly came across Saleem roaming the streets of Maiduguri as free as every other law-abiding citizen, instead of freezing in police custody preparatory to prosecution before a court of law.
Unrelenting, deeply aggrieved Hauwa”s family reportedly filed a fresh complaint at the Borno State Police Commissioners Office, (CP, Yusuf Lawan, on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, demanding justice in the case.
Consequently, the police again reportedly arrested Saleem Ibrahim. This time, the police invited the victim and took her report. From there, the police compiled a report on the case and forwarded it to the Borno State Ministry of Justice.
However, to this moment, no one has contacted the victim or her family, even after Saleem has allegedly confessed to committing the crime and his threat to kill her.
Is Saleem a superhuman parentage,extended family or cronies and, therefore, above the law of the land; and Hauwa, a subhuman that a Saleem could clobber her to a fainting state for no just reason and walk the streets of Maiduguri scot-free, even after confessing to committing the crime?
Jummai Mshelia, the Borno Coordinator of the National Human Right Commission(NHRC), condemned the senseless attack on the victim and demand that the suspect should be charge to court to serve as a deterrent to other perpetrators.
She said “We at human right, immediately the incident happened, the commission file a formal complaints to the Commisioner of Police who ordered the immediate arrest of the suspect. We commend the police for the quick response.
“We are told that the case has been written to the Ministry of Justice Department of Public Prosecution for their advice. While we awaits the response of the department, we want to assured the general public that the case would follow up the case untill justice is served,”she said.
Mshelia lamented that unwillingness of parent and relatives of victims of abuse to the increase of the crime in the society while the victims continued to lived with the stigmatisation and trauma forever.
She advice the public to report such incident to the National Human commission or any other security agencies to stampout the crimes in the society.
Do they not say no body is above the law? Saleem is above the law. No child from a poor family can do that and go free. If he is lucky enough that will be his end or otherwise him and his family will be imprisoned because they born a stubborn boy. Thank God. Police, do your work as the law said and not as influential family, politician and whosoever said please