Owner of the Wilmark Pharmacy Mr Emmanuel Ndobu, has been arrested and detained by men of the Delta State Police Command for allegedly stripping naked a young lady who reportedly stole from his supermarket. Along the old Lagos Asaba Road, Agbor.
Ndobu was arrested and detained at Owa Oyibu Divisional Police Station.
His arrest was facilitated by Behind Bars Human Right Foundation (BBHRF), in collaboration with Nigeria Police Area Command in Agbor, Delta State.
According to BBHRF, who tracked Ndobu after the incident, asides stripping the lady naked, he and others beat her up, filmed, shaved off her hair while they made a video of the scene and posted the clips on social media.
It was also discovered that the lady does not have a child, the milk she stole was not for her child as claimed and she is suspected to be a kleptomaniac because of her history of stealing and the kinds of items she takes from their owners.
Before now, the Nigeria Association of Woman Journalists (NAWOJ), Delta state chapter, had condemned strongly the viral video where the lady was seen stripped naked for alleged pilfering from a supermarket in Agbor, Delta state.
In a statement signed by the Chairperson and Secretary of the Association, Pat Gbemudu and Eunice Emeyezia respectively, described the act as unfortunate, barbaric and cruel in all aspects of human dignity.
The Association opined that the events in recent times orchestrated by the COVID-19 lockdown could have prompted various forms of temptation especially if the household of such a woman was faced with hardship and hunger.
While condemning the act of stealing in any form, NAWOJ frowned at the jungle justice meted out on the lady, insisting rather that the suspect should have been handed over to the Police.
The Association called on the security agencies to, as a matter of urgency, invite the management of Wilmark Supermarket Agbor and all those involved.
Recall that the social media was over the weekend awash with videos of severe humiliation of a lady by owner and staff of Wilmark Supermarket on an allegation of stealing some items from the grocery store.
Meanwhile, BBHRF, it was learnt, was able to reach out to some organisations who can rehabilitate her as they monitor the case of the store owner who took the law into his hands.
