Police warn against ‘social media verdicts’ on rape cases

The Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Oluseyi Babaseyi, has warned against the growing practice of reaching verdicts on rape allegations through social media before investigations are concluded or cases are determined by the courts.

Babaseyi made the observation in a Tuesday statement examining the handling of rape allegations, the influence of social media on criminal cases and the treatment of men who report sexual violence.

He said social media had increasingly become a platform where allegations were judged before the police investigated them, evidence was examined or lawyers and courts had the opportunity to test the facts.

“The courtroom now has a competitor. It is called the internet. And sometimes, it is faster than justice. But speed is not the same as truth,” Babaseyi said.

According to him, rape was one of the gravest allegations a person could face and should therefore be treated with seriousness, sensitivity and proper investigation.

He stressed that an allegation should not automatically be treated as a conviction.

Babaseyi said social media could play a positive role by exposing issues that might otherwise remain hidden, encouraging victims to speak, raising public awareness and putting pressure on institutions to act on legitimate complaints.

However, he warned against treating social media posts, videos and screenshots as proof of guilt.

“A post can go viral without being verified, a video can create an impression without providing the complete context, and a screenshot can be genuine and still tell only part of a story, ” the PPRO said.

The police spokesman said investigators had a responsibility to establish facts rather than manufacture guilt or innocence.

He said police investigations involved receiving complaints, protecting complainants, identifying and interviewing relevant persons, preserving evidence, examining digital communications, considering medical or forensic evidence where available, tracing witnesses and testing competing accounts.

“The investigation must be willing to follow the evidence wherever it leads. That is what makes policing credible, not the ability to satisfy the crowd, but the courage to pursue the truth.”

Babaseyi also called for an end to the mockery of men who report rape, saying the gender of a victim should not determine whether their experience was taken seriously.

“A male victim is still a victim. His gender should not make his experience less believable,” Babaseyi said.

He noted that Nigeria had different legal frameworks governing sexual offences, including the Criminal Code, Penal Code and Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015, as well as applicable state laws.

According to him, while the Criminal Code and Penal Code contain provisions traditionally framing rape around male perpetrators and female victims, the VAPP Act uses broader language.

He argued that the Act’s reference to “another person” and “the other person does not consent” meant that men could also be victims of rape under the broader framework.

Babaseyi, however, noted that the applicable law depended on the jurisdiction and legislation in force.

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He said the legal frameworks were not merely academic, stressing that rape was a legal question that should be determined under the applicable law rather than by hashtags, celebrity status or public sentiment.

“Rape is not a popularity contest. It is not a gender war, it is not a social-media referendum.”

The police spokesman also stressed that consent should not be assumed because of familiarity, a relationship or previous consensual sexual encounters.

“Knowing someone does not automatically mean consenting to sex.

“Being in a relationship does not automatically mean consenting to every sexual act. A previous consensual encounter does not create permanent consent,” Babaseyi said.

He said members of the public should be able to take allegations seriously without automatically declaring an accused person guilty.

“We can take an allegation seriously without declaring the accused guilty.

That is not contradiction, that is justice,” he said.

Babaseyi urged the public to focus on the truth rather than take sides based on personal preferences.

“Instead of asking: ‘Whose side are you on? Perhaps we should ask, whose side is the truth on?’”

He said justice required both compassion and due process, adding that victims should be protected without abandoning fairness to accused persons.

“Let us therefore create a society where a woman can say, ‘I was raped,’ without being silenced. Where a man can say the same without being mocked.

“Where the accused can say, ‘I am innocent,’ without being convicted by strangers.

“And where the police can investigate without being forced to choose between compassion and impartiality,” Babaseyi advised.

Babaseyi concluded that justice should not be determined by which party the public preferred to believe.

“Because justice is not served when we simply choose the person we prefer to believe.

“Justice is served when we create enough room for the truth to survive the noise,” he said.