Girl, 12, Left with Deformed Finger After ₦500 Theft Claim

A 12-year-old girl has serious burns and a deformed index finger after she was punished by a family she was staying with. They accused her of stealing ₦500.

Dr Tortiv Msen from the Benue State University Teaching Hospital shared this on Facebook. He was the doctor on call when the girl arrived at the emergency pediatric unit.

Dr Msen said a middle-aged female police officer brought the girl to the hospital about 10 days after she got burned. The girl’s parents live in a village and had sent her to live with another family in town.

"The girl’s parents live in a village, so she has been sent to stay with another family in town. That family accused her of stealing ₦500," Msen said.

He claimed that the family punished the girl by burning her finger, which left it permanently deformed. "They subjected her to a hellfire punishment, burning her finger until it was deformed," he explained.

The doctor added that the girl was forced to do household chores even with her injury and without proper care for her wound. "They forced her to continue house chores without wound care even as her finger worsened. No pain compares to that of a burn," he said.

It took the help of neighbors to rescue the girl and notify the police. Dr Msen said that later investigations found the girl was not the one who took the money. One of the family members confessed to taking it.

"It was later found out that one of the family members, who confessed to the police, took the money and not the poor girl," he stated.

Dr Msen said the incident has stuck with him. He expressed worry about how children are treated when they are left in the care of others. "That moment stayed with me," he said.

He urged parents to focus on what matters most and pray for strength to be there for their children. "As parents, praying for longevity is beyond our cravings for the beautiful things of this world, but that we may be there and strong enough to care for our children," he said.

He noted that this girl will likely have a constant reminder of her painful experience for the rest of her life. "The little girl will grow up with a deformed finger constantly reminding her of how below the bare minimum adults around her fell," Msen concluded.