Police said after a hearing on Thursday, the defendants were subsequently remanded at a correctional centre pending further court proceedings.
The Children, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Court in Awka, Anambra State has remanded four suspects for alleged rape of unidentified women in the state.
The police spokesperson in Anambra State, Tochukwu Ikenga, said in a statement on Thursday that the police in the state were prosecuting the suspects.
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Mr Ikenga, a superintendent of police, said the defendants were arraigned by the police on Thursday.
He said that although the charges against the defendants were based on rape, they are separate cases.
The spokesperson said after a hearing on Thursday, the defendants were remanded at a correctional centre pending further court proceedings.
He did not identify the defendants and the details of the charges against them.
Police commissioner speaks
The Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, Ikioye Orutugu, has reassured Nigerians that they are committed to the protection of children and other vulnerable people in the state, Mr Ikenga said.
Mr Orutugu warned that offenders will be prosecuted in line with the law.
Prohibited in Nigeria
Nigeria, in 2015, enacted the Violence against Persons (Prohibition) Act, which outlawed all forms of violence against women and girls, including rape, female circumcision and forceful ejection.
Offenders, on conviction, face life imprisonment or maximum of 14-year jail term, depending on the age of the offender and type of violence committed.
Several persons have been convicted by various courts for rape.
An Ado-Ekiti High Court, in July 2022, sentenced a 49-year-old man, Dele Adeyanju, to four years imprisonment for raping an 11-year-old girl.
A Bauchi High Court, in 2017, sentenced two middle-aged men to life in prison for raping a 40-year-old woman and plucking her eyes.
