After Mother’s Death 5 Years Old Boy Found Dead In Soak-Away

Little Desmond, who was taken in by his maternal aunt, Mrs Joy Odufo in February, after the death of his mother, reportedly went missing at about at 6.30p.m on Wednesday, June 28.

A missing five-year-old boy, Desmond Rabome, has been found dead in soakaway (septic tank) at an uncompleted building in Ushafa community, Bwari Area Council, Abuja.

This attracted concern from some residents of the Ushafa community, who assisted in the search for the boy. Mrs Odufo, who is the elder sister to Desmond’s father, alleged that the matter was reported at the Ushaffa Police Station, but no action was taken to search for the missing boy.

Mrs Odufo, a petty alcohol retailer, and an Urhobo from Delta, disclosed yesterday in Bwari, that the boy was later found dead in a soakaway on June 29, at an uncompleted building near her store. A neighbour, Mr. Ikenna Ojobor, however, alleged carelessness on the part of the boy’s guardians as the cause of the tragedy.

Ojobor said though Desmond was a little unruly, most people in the community were fond of him because he was an adorable and playful child. His words: “From what I know about Desmond, he was very likeable; I only blame his guardians for failing to take proper care of him. “The death of the young boy was felt by all members of this community. This is a lesson for other parents; it is negligence on the part of those left to cater for this child that resulted in this ugly incident.”

Mr. Sumaila Sabo, community leader of Ushafa, advised that the remains of the late boy be buried at the place he was found, since the cause of death was unknown. “I will advise the family to discuss with the owner of the uncompleted house and bury the late toddler in the environment where his corpse was found,” Sabo said. In a separate interview, the Investigative Police Officer, IPO, who spoke on condition of anonymity at the Police Station in Bwari, said Mrs Odufo only reported about the missing boy, but not his death.

According to the IPO, “we were only told that the child was missing in Ushafa; we have not heard anything from her concerning the death of the boy. “We will put necessary measures in place to investigate the matter properly, since it is a juvenile case, to ensure that we bring the offender to book.”