A 32-year-old Beninese fashion designer, Jacob Joseph, has been arrested by operatives of the Ondo State Police Command for allegedly defiling his 16-year-old apprentice. The suspect, a father of four, is accused of forcing the teenager to consume alcoholic drinks before sexually assaulting her at his shop in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
The incident reportedly occurred on April 22, 2026, at Joseph's shop located within the Holy Trinity Anglican Church Shopping Complex, near the Mother and Child Hospital. According to the victim, the suspect instructed her to report for night duty, which she did, unaware of his sinister intentions.
The teenager narrated that upon arrival, she found only her boss at the shop. He forced her to drink an alcoholic beverage, and she soon became unconscious. When she woke up, she was alone in the shop, bleeding from her private parts, realizing she had been sexually assaulted.
In her statement to the police, the victim said: “On the fateful day, we were at the shop when my boss called me into the showroom. He brought out an alcoholic wine and a glass cup and asked me to drink it. I refused because I was not used to taking such drinks, but he forced me to take it. Immediately after drinking it, I informed my fellow apprentices because I began to feel discomfort in my body.
“Later, he told me that he had informed my colleagues that we were all to return to the shop by 10:00 p.m. for compulsory night duty. I told my mother about it, and she said it would be better for me to go earlier so I would not have to trek alone at night. I left home around 8:00 p.m., and he had already called my mother to ask her to release me.”
She continued: “When I got to the shop, I did not see any of my colleagues. I only saw him, and he gave me the key to the shop. I opened it and stayed there alone, thinking I had arrived too early. About ten minutes later, he entered the shop. We started watching a film on his phone while he said we should wait for the others.
“He later brought out another alcoholic drink from his fridge and forced me to take it, claiming it would keep me awake until the next morning. I took only a little of it, but I immediately became unconscious.
“I do not know how I ended up drinking a larger quantity. I was totally weak and barely conscious. I could hardly hear what he was saying, and he kept giving me more until I vomited. I then noticed that he was touching me.
“When I woke up the next day in his house, I found myself in his house with the knowledge that he had sexually abused me, and I found blood in my pants.”
The victim's family reported that the ordeal has left her with emotional trauma and physical injuries. Her parents lodged a complaint at the Oke-Aro Police Division, leading to the arrest of the suspect.
Confirming the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer of the Ondo State Command, Abayomi Jimoh, stated that the father of the victim reported that his daughter was sexually assaulted by her employer. Upon receiving the complaint, the victim was taken to the police clinic for medical examination and treatment, while operatives swiftly arrested the suspect.
