A 16-year-old domestic worker has been rescued by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) after her employer allegedly poured hot water on her in the Gwarinpa area of Abuja.
The rescue, which took place on Friday, followed a tip-off from neighbours who witnessed the incident. The teenage girl, from Imo State and the sixth child in a family of twelve, had been employed to look after her employer’s three children, including two-month-old twins and a seven-year-old boy.
Witnesses said the young girl sustained severe burns after the attack and was immediately rushed to a hospital by concerned neighbours before NAPTIP was contacted. Officials of the agency later took custody of the victim and began an investigation into the case.
NAPTIP confirmed that the employer would face legal consequences once investigations are concluded. The agency stressed its commitment to ensuring justice for the teenager and protecting vulnerable children from abuse.
This latest case adds to a troubling record of domestic violence involving the use of hot water in Nigeria. In 2022, a woman in Ogun State was reported to have poured hot water on her husband, leading to his death, while in 2023, a landlord in the same state was accused of scalding an 11-year-old girl with hot water.