LGBTQ: 27 Suspects To Appear In Courts
A total of 15 grown-up women and 12 middle-aged men from different parts of the country who were apprehended at Cosmas Hotel in Karu local government in Nasarrawa state by a vigilante group and handed over to the Nigeria Police are to be arraigned in court for alleged same-sex activities, according to a Police source.
The suspects were rounded up around 10:00pm on July 20 by members of the Etsu vigilante group following a tip-off that some suspected members of the Lesbians, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals otherwise known as LBGTQ group were frolicking in Cosmas Hotel where they had checked in for an all-night event.
Sources said the hotel is on the verge of being sealed up for playing host to the outlaw group while security officials argued that the proposed closure is meant to facilitate hitch hitch-free investigation.
The suspects were initially detained at the New Karu Divisional Police Station but later released on administrative bail pending their arraignment in a high court following outcries from human rights groups.
Same-sex sexual activity is highly prohibited in Nigeria under the Criminal Code Act and the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act of 2013.
Apart from being treated as social outcasts, members of the LGBTQ suffered severe discrimination and stigmatization.
Homosexuality offenses in Nigeria attract a maximum of fourteen years imprisonment..
