Tanzania Police arrest four suspects in girl’s rape syndicate
Police spokesperson David Misime
What you need to know:
- The suspects, namely Clinton Honest Damas, famously known as Nyundo, Praygod Edwin Mushi, Amini Lord Lema, and Nikson Idala Jakson were arrested in Dodoma and Coast Regions.
Dar es Salaam. The Police Force has arrested four out of six key suspects in the gang rape of a girl whose video clip went viral early this week.
The law enforcement agent said the suspects implicated in arranging and executing the widely condemned act were nabbed in Dodoma and Coast regions.
The Police have so far named the culprits as Clinton Honest Damas alias Nyundo, Praygod Edwin Mushi, Amini Lord Lema and Nikson Idala Jackson.
A public notice released by the Police Force on Friday, August 9, 2024, says four other suspects implicated in distributing the video clips on social media platforms have been arrested in Dar es Salaam.
The arrested suspects are Flora Mlombola; Aghatha Mchome; Magatha Jeremiah Budodi; and James Nyanda Paulo.
“Four other suspects have been apprehended for crafting and disseminating false information on social media platforms saying RIP (Rest In Peace). The raped and abused girl has died,” reads part of the public notice.
“Another false information says the girl’s mother fainted to death. Two suspects have been arrested in Dar es Salaam and Arusha respectively,” reads another part of the notice.
The statement names the arrested suspects as Amos Lwiza, Adam Dongo, Venance Mallya, and Isack Elias.
Furthermore, Police said the investigation and manhunt for the remaining two key suspects who are still in hideouts continues for them to be arraigned for the law to take its course.
The public has been cautioned to volunteer information about the two suspect's whereabouts, warning that once the suspects are arrested hiding, the owner of the house will also be arrested and arraigned.
“The Police Force would like to warn some unauthorized people who have been visiting the place where the victim has been living to question her. Doing so is lowering human dignity and adding pain to existing wounds they have in their hearts,” he said.
Sharing more details of the incident, the notice says the incident took place in May 2024, in the Swaswa Area, in Dodoma.
On August 4, 2024, social media circulated videos showing five men sexually assaulting the woman while accusing her of having an affair with another person’s husband.
In the footage, the woman is heard identifying herself and pleading for forgiveness from someone identified as a law enforcement officer. The video, reportedly recorded by the men, has been widely shared online.
It was Mr Jacob Boniface who took to X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday, stating that the victim, a resident of Yombo Dovya in Temeke District, Dar es Salaam, was raped and sodomized by the men, who identified themselves as “security officers.”
Mr Jacob added that the five men, as seen in the video, allegedly acted under the orders of their superior, who accused the woman of having an affair with the superior’s husband.
