The Police in Katsina State have uncovered and shut down another Islamic home, housing some children who were said to have been treated inhumanely in the Sabon Garin Daura area of Katsina North.
The building was discovered after some of the boys who had escaped embarked on a protest over allegations of violation of human rights at the centre.
Owned by one of the most famous and respected Islamic scholars in Daura, Bello Mai Almajirai, the centre is said to house people perceived to be outlaws from their parents and the society.
“on 12/10/2019 at about 10:09hrs, based on a tip-off, the Command succeeded in busting/smashing an illegal detention/remand home being operated by one Mallam Bello Abdullahi Umar, m, aged 78yrs of Sabon Garin Daura, Daura LGA of Katsina state”
The escapees, numbering over 200, ran into the town, narrating how they were being maltreated, a development that sparked outrage in the community against the owner.
Briefing journalists at the center on Monday, the State Commissioner of Police, CP Sanusi Buba, told reporters that preliminary investigation revealed that Malam Bello had been running the center for about 40 years and later left it in the hands of his son, Umar Bello.
He lamented about the deteriorating situation at the center, adding that each of the six rooms accommodates over 40 inmates who were subjected to all forms of dehumanising conditions including being chained.
The Police CP intimated that 67 persons between the ages of 7 to 40 years were found shackled with chains.
“In the course of an investigation, 67 persons from the ages of 7 to 40yrs were found shackled with chains. Victims were also found to have been subjected to various inhuman and degrading treatments.”
He enjoined parents to take their recalcitrant children to only recognized and approved rehabilitation facilities provided or registered by the government.
CP Buba said that the victims have already been evacuated and taken to the hospital for treatment, while efforts are ongoing to reunite them with their families.
