The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection (MoGCSP) has announced the arrest of suspect involved in the abuse of a six-year-old child at Asamankese over bed-wetting.

According to the Ministry, after strongly condemning the act, which went viral a few days ago, the Ghana Police Service was promptly notified to take action on the matter.

"The Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection (MoGCSP) wishes to inform the general public that, following the circulation of the viral video showing the abuse of a child, the matter was promptly referred to the Ghana Police Service by the Minister for Gender, Children, and Social Protection. The police have since arrested the suspect involved, and the investigation is currently ongoing," a statement released by the ministry read.

The Ministry cautioned parents, guardians, and caregivers against the use of violent disciplinary methods and urged the adoption of non-violent approaches to child upbringing, as discipline must never result in physical harm to a child.

MoGCSP reiterated its commitment to the protection of children. At the same time, it assured that it will continue to collaborate with law enforcement agencies and stakeholders to prevent such incidents and to ensure that perpetrators of child abuse are held accountable.

"Protecting children is indeed a shared responsibility. Families, communities, traditional and religious leaders, and the public all have a role to play to ensure that children grow up in a safe, caring, and protective environment," the statement added.

In October, the Central Regional Police Command arrested a forty-nine-year-old fisherman for defiling a 13-year-old girl in Apam, in the Central Region.

His arrest followed a video that went viral on social media capturing the man engaged in the unscrupulous act.

A statement shared by the police stated that, “On October 17, 2025, about 1300 hours, the Apam District Police Command received information that on October 16, 2025, a 49-year-old fisherman by the name Samuel Armah, a.k.a Kofi Nyan, had defiled a 13-year-old girl at Mumford, a suburb of Apam. That the suspect lured the survivor into a ghetto at Mumford and defiled her.Police on receipt of information proceeded to the area, and with the assistance of Mumford, task force arrested the suspect.”

The survivor has since been hospitalised at St. Luke Catholic Hospital for examination and treatment.

The statement further explained that after the matter was reported, the case docket was forwarded to the Central Regional office of the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit (DOVVSU) for further investigation.

Upon interrogation at the Unit, the suspect admitted to committing the offence. He was then taken into custody by the police to assist with ongoing investigations.

The statement added that the accused person will be formally charged and brought before the court for prosecution on 23 October 2025.

The command has assured the general public that justice will be served in the matter. It has also appealed to residents of Mumford and its surrounding communities to support efforts to arrest the four accomplices identified as Agoogo, Edina, Kwesi Abbam, and Agya Ankoto, who are currently on the run.

The command has urged anyone with credible information about the whereabouts of these suspects to contact them on 18555 or 0299205854, or to report to the nearest police station.

In 2022, the Central Regional Police Command recorded more than 200 defilement cases within 18 months.

Of the total number, about 147 males were arrested with some absconding and are being pursued to face the law.

A police source told the Ghana News Agency that about 101 cases had been taken to court, and 25 suspects had been charged and convicted.

It blamed the disparities in reporting, arresting, and prosecution of cases on the lack of incriminating evidence, cooperation from victims and families, and legal complexities.

The source condemned the act and attributed the rise in defilement cases to poverty and lack of parental guidance and protection of children, which pushed the victims into the hands of pedophiles.

The source encouraged parents to strictly monitor their children in their usage of mobile phones, including the sites they visited and their relationships.

Some children get paedophiles online asking them to snap half or full naked pictures of themselves and innocently, some of the children fall prey to such antics.

Parents must, however, devise stringent measures to protect children from smartphones, social media, and paedophiles as the police continued to put in all efforts to ensure that criminal activities were reduced across the region, the source said.

A report by the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit said a lot of cases on sexual-based violence were reported to the Unit, but only about five percent was convicted.

That was because some families later received compensations from the perpetrators and decided to settle the matter at home without considering the physical and psychological effects on the victims.

The practice had derailed the fortunes of many girls in terms of reproductive health and socio-economic well-being, the source said.