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Police in southern Nigeria have arrested 15 people after multiple women were allegedly molested at an annual cultural event described as a “rape festival”.
Videos posted on X from the week-long Uruamudhu Aluejo Festival in Ozoro in Delta State show mobs of men appearing to assault screaming women and a man warning that “during this period, any girl that comes outside will be raped”, and local authorities have warned women in the area not to go out alone.
This year’s event has sparked outrage online, particularly from local women, but Nigerian authorities and local community leaders have insisted that the traditional festival is not associated with sexual violence, and denied allegations of rape.
Many girls have reportedly been r@p£d and m0l£sted by men in Ozoro during what is being described as a “r@p!ng festival” in the area.
According to multiple reports and videos circulating online, today is said to be the day of this festival in the Ozoro community, and girls are… pic.twitter.com/h1CjvFQg74
— TENIOLA (@Teeniiola) March 20, 2026
Delta State Police Command spokesman Bright Edafe on Friday called the scenes emerging from the festival “alarming, disgusting and embarrassing” and said “no custom or tradition is superior to the rights of citizens”.
Police then arrested five suspects, including festival organiser Chief Omorede Sunday, and made more arrests on Saturday, bringing the total number of people in custody to 15.
Some Nigerian commentators have alleged that similar “rape festivals” are widespread in many parts of the country and claimed the targeting of underage girls is a common aspect of the cultural events, while others have blamed the alleged victims for being outside during the so-called “rape festival”.
The Rape tradition isn’t just in Ozoro alone it’s very prominent in all of Delta Central and Isoko North.
As a child, I hated going to my village because of the horrors of children screaming behind my grandfather’s window while they were being raped by grown up men in the name of…— Aunty PreshTush (@Iampreshtush) March 20, 2026
“adjé émete wrógbo ke dwò ke dwô”
This is the song sang by the rapists in urhobo land during those babaric festivals.
The songs translates as
“pursue women enter bush and fvck them”
If it isn’t a raping festival, why then is this song a general chant during festivals?
If it…— Aunty PreshTush (@Iampreshtush) March 21, 2026
Harassment is wrong But let’s be realistic girls in Ozoro know the tradition… stay home or risk the masquerade punishment..
Educate women on the risks instead of pretending the culture appeared yesterday to rape people.
— MANEY 💥 (@Charlzmaney) March 20, 2026
She caused the problems herself, so why did she come out in the first place?
— Waltibrown (@walter_est3672) March 20, 2026
Girls in my community (Ozoro, Delta state) are currently getting molested and raped because of a sick tradition that says any woman who’s out from 12noon today is allowed to get molested. The videos I’ve seen are horrific.
— Veronica Park. (@Tegsmamaa) March 19, 2026
In the traditional culture of Nigeria’s Isoko people, the Uruamudhu Aluejo Festival is a significant observance during which time is set aside to honour ancestral spirits, venerate the dead, and seek prosperity in the coming year.
But Mr Edafe said sex attacks were not part of the cultural festival, and that this year’s event was hijacked by criminals, local media outlet Vanguard reported.
“The command reiterates that preliminary findings indicate that the unfortunate incident was perpetrated by criminal elements who exploited the situation to engage in acts of sexual violence, which are in no way representative of any legitimate cultural practice,” he said.
A statement by the President-General of Ozoro Kingdom, Chief Berkley Asiafa, and Secretary-General, Prince Obaro Egware, said the cultural festival was “misinterpreted” by some young men and denied any rapes took place.
“The Alue-Do Festival is traditionally regarded as a festival of fertility. It is widely believed to be a cultural practice that brings blessings of children to individuals or couples experiencing difficulty in childbirth. As part of this long-standing tradition, certain symbolic practices are observed, including the act of playfully dragging and pouring sand on married individuals who are yet to have children, as a cultural expression believed to invoke fertility,” the statement said.
“However, it has come to our attention that some youths misinterpreted and misapplied this cultural practice in a negative and unacceptable manner, leading to the harassment of some young women.
“We wish to clearly state that reports circulating on social media alleging that rape and widespread atrocities occurred during the festival are false and misleading. No incidents of rape were recorded.”
Nigerians are one of Australia’s fastest-growing ethnic groups by population, almost doubling in population between the 2021 census and 2024 from 12,550 to 20,060, according to ABS population estimates for 2024.
Header image: Left, right, women being attacked at the festival (X).
