By Chidi Okonkwo– In a harrowing account of persecution of 26-year-old Vera Samuel Elijah from Akamkpa, Calabar, Cross River State, a reliable source revealed the violent retribution she faced from her family after her lesbian identity was exposed. Now declared “wanted dead or alive” alongside her partner, Juliet, Vera’s ordeal illuminates the severe risks confronting LGBTQ+ individuals in Nigeria, where same-sex relationships are outlawed and state protection is absent.
Speaking to our reporter, the source shared Vera’s story to indicate the persecution driving her and Juliet into hiding, as their current whereabouts remain unknown.
The terror unfolded on October 22, 2020, when Vera’s stepbrother, Boma, discovered her with her partner, Juliet, in a private moment. He immediately began blackmailing her, demanding compliance to keep her lesbian relationship secret. When Vera refused his demands, Boma exposed her to their family, presenting compromising photos he had secretly taken of the couple.
The family’s response was however swift and vicious. They beat Vera, leaving bruises all over her body.
The source recounted “Boma grabbed a knife and pressed it to her neck, threatening to slit her throat to erase the ‘shame’ she brought brought to the family”.
The attack might have ended in her death had neighbors not intervened, alerted by her screams. Their actions created enough chaos for Vera to escape, battered and terrified. Since then, her family has declared both her and Juliet “wanted dead or alive,” spreading word through community networks to hunt them down.
Fearing for their lives, both women fled separately, their current locations unknown even to each other, as the threats against them persist.
Nigeria’s legal and social climate offers no safe haven for individuals like Vera. The Same-Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act of 2014 criminalizes same-sex relationships with up to 14 years’ imprisonment, while in northern states under Sharia law, penalties can include death by stoning.
The legislation has fueled widespread violence and discrimination. Human Rights Watch reports a 214% surge in abuses against LGBTQ+ individuals since the law’s enactment, with police often complicit in arrests, torture, and extortion.
Amnesty International has documented mass detentions, such as the 2023 arrest of over 70 people at a suspected gay event, underscoring how authorities target rather than protect the community. Reuters investigations reveal that 71% of LGBTQ+ Nigerians report identity-based abuses, frequently involving law enforcement.
For Vera, reporting her situation to the police was unthinkable, as disclosing her lesbian identity would likely lead to her own arrest under anti-gay laws, leaving her defenseless against her family’s vendetta.
The source further told Factual NG that seeking safety, Vera fled to Abuja to stay with a friend, but menacing calls from unknown numbers soon followed, pressuring her friend to reveal Vera’s location. Advised that her friend’s house offered no refuge, Vera vanished, her whereabouts now a mystery. Juliet, facing similar dangers, also disappeared, reportedly to an unknown destination.
As Vera and Juliet remain in hiding, their story stands as a powerful call for justice and reform in a nation where love can be a death sentence.
