A housewife, Rabi Nuhu, in Magama Gumau, Toro Local Council of Bauchi State, has allegedly brutalised a five-year-old girl for bedwetting.

The Guardian learnt that the victim, who lost her mother about a year ago, lives with her father, Mohammed Umar, and his new wife but has been subjected to repeated violence.

A resident of the area and human rights activist, Kabiru Mohammed Abdulkadir, alleged that the girl had been brutalised for about five days before the matter came to light.

“To avoid issues with the stepmother, her father bought a separate mattress for her, but her stepmother didn’t stop the violence. The victim met her uncle to buy another mattress for her, saying that her stepmother had burnt her private part because she bed wet often.

“It was her uncle who escalated the matter and reported it to the police. We also gathered that the suspect normally transfers aggression between her and the victim’s father to her,” he said.

The victim’s father, Umar, who works with an online television station, said his wife had repeatedly complained about the child’s bedwetting, prompting him to buy a separate mattress. He explained that he initially believed his wife’s claim that hot tea had spilled on the girl after noticing burns on her private part.

The spokesperson for the Bauchi State Police Command, CSP Mohammed Wakil, confirmed the incident, stating that it was reported on September 13, 2025, at about 3:00 p.m.

“The victim sustained burns on her lower abdomen, thighs, and buttocks,” Wakil said.

He added that the Commissioner of Police, Sani Omolori Aliyu, had ordered the immediate arrest of the suspect and directed that the case be transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for discreet investigation.