The Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit in Bolgatanga at the Upper East Regional Police headquarters recorded 22 cases of defilement in 2020 and 2021. In the same years, the unit recorded 4 reported cases of rape.
Defilement is a crime committed against girls below the age of 16 years.
Speaking to Dreamz News as part of a documentary titled Defiled and Bruised, Asooh Lardi Mary, a Station Officer at the unit noted that more defilement cases are recorded by her outfit.
This, therefore, means that children below 16 years stand a greater risk of being sexually abused as she suspects the cases could be higher but due to attempts to often solve some of these cases at the community level, many go unreported.
For her, the increased reporting could be a result of the gradual awakening of people to the fact that defilement is a crime punishable by law to wit one could serve a minimum jail sentence of 7 years and a maximum term of 25 years.
The documentary has been produced by Dreamz Fm with support from Youth Harvest Foundation Ghana.
“We recorded 22 defilement cases in 2020 and 2021. 11 for 2020 and another 11 for 2021. We also recorded 4 rape cases. Even the cases could be higher but unfortunately, some don’t report and solve at home or at the community level and this is something we advise people against because defilement is a crime that should not be settled out of the legal system,” she sadly noted.
