Ignobis Hotels on Gado Nasco Road in Kubwa, Abuja, was raided by the Gender Unit of the Nigeria Police Criminal Investigation Department on Friday due to allegations of child abuse and endangerment.
Inspector Ossai Ojobo, an investigation police officer, was in charge of the raid along with members from a non-governmental organization and the Social Development Secretariat (SDS).
Priscilla Abuyah, a restaurant owner, and Mr. Akbueze Chidi, the hotel manager, were both detained during the operation and sent to the Force CID for questioning.
An NGO named Human Rights Agenda Network (HRAN) petitioned the SDS's Social Welfare Department, stating that the hotel was housing minors and subjecting them to sexual exploitation. The petition led to the search.
According to Mrs. Joy Omokivie, the SDS Officer in charge of the case, the SDS forwarded the petition to the Force CID's Gender Unit for further investigation.
Omokivie stated that locals referred to the hotel as a brothel because young girls, including minors, were brought in for intercourse there.
According to the petition, HRAN claimed that a 4-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl were staying at the hotel with a lady who was posing as their mother.
After further investigations, she continued, the 12-year-old girl was saved and is now in the care of the Social Welfare Department, "while the young boy is still with the mother."
The raid is a part of an ongoing investigation to ascertain the truth of the accusations; if confirmed, the youngsters will be rescued and offenders will be brought to justice.
The mother, Mrs. Immanuela Austyn-Araki, a Bolt driver, was charged by HRAN in the petition with leaving the kids in the hotel alone in the morning.
Until mother returns late at night or the next morning, according to the NGO, the youngsters primarily consume snacks and noodles.
HRAN continued by saying that its research had shown the woman had been in the hotel with the kids for more than two years, exposing them to a variety of sexual activities by other guests.
The group claimed that the youngster had access to the internet and was able to visit websites that were inappropriate for children her age. They also claimed that the girl had an account on Tik-Tok where she posted information that was geared toward adults.
The organization claims that men, including the hotel owner, frequently stop by the room where the children and their mother are staying when the mother is away.
HRAN also claimed that there were young girls using the hotel's facilities for commercial sex acts, raising suspicions that the woman may be involved in child trafficking.
The NGO then requested that the police look into the situation in an effort to save the youngster.
The hotel management and the restaurant owner declined to respond to the petition after reading it at the Force CID, unless their attorney was present.
I am a good Christian and a traditional title bearer in my community, said Mr. Eze Obasi, the hotel's managing director and chief executive officer, in response to the accusation.
I am unable to participate in the sexual exploitation, abuse, or endangerment of little girls in my hotel as a result.
"All I know is that the woman in issue was being abused by her husband and that she and her children arrived at the hotel to seek safety from him.
"Four distinct groups brought this matter to my attention, and it has been resolved.
In the guise of the police search for children, he remarked, "I do not understand why police officers will still come to the hotel to embarrass my clients."
