The Bauchi State Police Command has finally released 16-year-old Jennifer Joseph, a Christian teenager from Adamawa State, to her parents following weeks of controversy over her custody and alleged change of religious identity.
Drivetvnews gathered that Jennifer was released on Monday after extensive discussions at the police command, bringing a major development to a case that had attracted public attention because of the involvement of her family, a Christian ministry and an Islamic Da’awah organisation.
Reverend Mohammed Mohammed of the Bishara Dole Christian Ministry confirmed that Jennifer had been reunited with her parents.
However, he disclosed that police had detained Rev. Badamasi, a staff member of the ministry, over an allegation that he molested Jennifer while accompanying her from Adamawa to Bauchi.
Mohammed rejected the allegation, describing it as “laughable” and insisting that the matter should be subjected to a proper investigation.
The controversy began after Jennifer’s mother, Saratu Daniel, from Ganye Local Government Area of Adamawa State, sought government and police intervention over her daughter’s whereabouts.
She alleged that Jennifer had been introduced to Islam during a family visit and that she subsequently took the teenager to the Bishara Dole facility in Bauchi.
The mother later claimed that a man identified as Abubakar removed Jennifer from the facility and took her to an Islamic Da’awah group without the family’s permission.
The matter eventually reached the Bauchi State Police Command, where several meetings were held between the family and the organisations involved.
At one point, Jennifer was placed under the Bauchi State Agency for Orphans and Vulnerable Children while the dispute was being addressed.
A subsequent meeting on August 23 generated further controversy after Bishara Dole alleged that Jennifer was taken to an undisclosed location before being brought into the meeting and asked to choose between her parents and the Da’awah group.
Police denied that allegation, saying Jennifer was instead asked whether she preferred to stay with her mother or grandmother if released.
The latest development has now seen Jennifer returned to her parents, while questions remain over the events that led to the dispute and the allegations involving members of the Christian ministry.
The allegation against Rev. Badamasi remains an allegation and has not been independently established.
The case has drawn attention because it involves a minor caught in a dispute involving family custody, religious affiliation and competing claims over her welfare.
