Steven Tuopeh, 14, to be Charged as Adult in the Gang Rape of 8-Year Old AZ Girl, Girl's Parents Say She is to be Blamed for Incident

The parents of an eight year old girl, who was sexually assaulted by four boys, are blaming their daughter for the attack, saying that she has brought shame on their family. Well, that's what the cops have said and that is just unconscionable that the parents could harbor such feelings against their daughter. No woman or girl asks to be raped. I think the parents are the ones who brought shame on their family because most rational people are wondering how they could ever arrive at such a conclusion of blaming their eight year old daughter for such a sexual attack. Four boys are now under arrest, and the victim is in Child Protective Services, away from her parents, and rightly so. The girl's father told ABC15 he loves his daughter and plans to get her back."I need her back, I want her back, and they (Child Protective Services) said I can have her back in three months," he said. They should keep this girl far, far away from these parents, who have obviously failed her miserably and probably criminally. One boy, 14-year-old Steven Tuopeh, will be tried as an adult for the crimes and is facing two counts of sexual assault and one count of kidnapping.

The father also said the family moved to the United States five years ago from West Africa and they don't understand the United States' criminal system. When ABC15 asked him what he wants to happen to the suspects involved in the assault against his daughter, he answered, "Nothing." Is this man serious? Okay, maybe this crime is accepted in his native country, which I find hard to believe in this technologically advanced age, but there is no reason why a parent should even entertain such a notion that nothing should happen to the perpetrators of this horrific crime against his daughter. Where are the parents of these young criminals who stole this child's innocence? They should be held just as accountable too.

The four sex assault suspects in the crime apparently lured the girl into a vacant shed near 43rd Avenue and Thomas Road last Thursday by offering her chewing gum, said Phoenix Police Sgt. Andy Hill. They then restrained her, and sexually assaulted her for 10 to 15 minutes, according to Hill. Officers were called to the scene after receiving phone calls about the young girl screaming, and running out of the shed partially clothed. Arriving officers said they saw several boys running from the scene, and were able to detain one and later identify three more. Hill said all the boys, ages 9, 10, 13 and 14, have been arrested and put in a juvenile corrections center.

All four have apparently admitted to planning the assault and have been charged in the case. The 13-year-old suspect is accused of three counts of sexual assault, and one count of kidnapping. The 10-year-old is accused of two counts of sexual assault and one count of kidnapping. The nine-year-old suspect is accused of one count of sexual assault. All of the crimes listed are class 2 felonies. Source: ABC15

The family needs to understand that the United States is a vastly different environment than their native country and this behavior would never be condoned under any circumstance whatever. If the child is returned to the parents, they should be forced to get intensive counseling. These people are clearly living in another mindset and it cannot be swept under the rug and just attributed to cultural differences. Rape is wrong, no matter where you are from.

Liberia Under Attack From Armyworms, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf Declares a State of Emergency

It seems like the continent of Africa just can't catch a break. The Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has declared a state of emergency in response to a plague of crop-destroying armyworms. The bugs are among the world's most destructive agricultural pests. Liberia isn't the only country faced with this mounting problem. Farmers in Kenya and Tanzania have also suffered outbreaks in recent years. Something drastic needs to be done and quickly. The last time Liberia was attacked on such a large scale was in the late 1970s. The losses this time around could cause serious food shortages. The country is already heavily dependent on imported rice to feed its 3.5 million citizens. The government says it cannot cope with the scale of the outbreak and has called in the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to help. To make matters worse, the worms are now spreading to neighbouring Guinea and towards Sierra Leone. The best weapon that can be used against the pest is to spray crops with chemical insecticides.

What exactly are armyworms?

The menace known as the "African armyworm" is in fact a caterpillar. During the rainy season, the insects emerge in sudden swarms and rapidly devour crops such as maize, sorghum, millet, rice and sugar cane. The pest gets its name from its habit of "marching" in large numbers into crop fields. Like locusts, armyworms appear in huge numbers, ravage farms, and then move on once fields are barren. They also cause disease, as their faeces enters rivers and streams can contaminate drinking water supplies.

Where did they come from?

The armyworms are the larvae of nocturnal moths, of the species Spodoptera exempta. During the rainy seasons, the moths spread and begin laying eggs in grasses and food crops. Each female lays between 500 and 1,000 eggs in her 10-day lifetime. The moths are capable of long-distance migration - more than 100km (60 miles) per night - allowing the swarms to spread rapidly.

Once hatched, the larvae migrate through grasslands in snake-like colonies. On reaching crop fields, they begin feasting. At full size (5cm - 2in) the caterpillars can lay waste to whole farms within days. They then simply move on to the next available target. Source: BBC News UK

A more radical approach to prevention of the spread of armyworms is a virus known as NPV, which is being investigated by researchers from the UK, Canada and Tanzania. According to BBC News, the naturally occurring virus is specifically lethal to army worms, but it appears too late in most years to prevent them causing serious crop damage. Scientists hope to study and harness the virus, to create an effective pest control technique. The last thing Africa needs is another country in the throes of massive food shortage.

Liberia Under Attack From Armyworms, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf Declares a State of Emergency

It seems like the continent of Africa just can't catch a break. The Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has declared a state of emergency in response to a plague of crop-destroying armyworms. The bugs are among the world's most destructive agricultural pests. Liberia isn't the only country faced with this mounting problem. Farmers in Kenya and Tanzania have also suffered outbreaks in recent years. Something drastic needs to be done and quickly. The last time Liberia was attacked on such a large scale was in the late 1970s. The losses this time around could cause serious food shortages. The country is already heavily dependent on imported rice to feed its 3.5 million citizens. The government says it cannot cope with the scale of the outbreak and has called in the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to help. To make matters worse, the worms are now spreading to neighbouring Guinea and towards Sierra Leone. The best weapon that can be used against the pest is to spray crops with chemical insecticides.

What exactly are armyworms?

The menace known as the "African armyworm" is in fact a caterpillar. During the rainy season, the insects emerge in sudden swarms and rapidly devour crops such as maize, sorghum, millet, rice and sugar cane. The pest gets its name from its habit of "marching" in large numbers into crop fields. Like locusts, armyworms appear in huge numbers, ravage farms, and then move on once fields are barren. They also cause disease, as their faeces enters rivers and streams can contaminate drinking water supplies.

Where did they come from?

The armyworms are the larvae of nocturnal moths, of the species Spodoptera exempta. During the rainy seasons, the moths spread and begin laying eggs in grasses and food crops. Each female lays between 500 and 1,000 eggs in her 10-day lifetime. The moths are capable of long-distance migration - more than 100km (60 miles) per night - allowing the swarms to spread rapidly.

Once hatched, the larvae migrate through grasslands in snake-like colonies. On reaching crop fields, they begin feasting. At full size (5cm - 2in) the caterpillars can lay waste to whole farms within days. They then simply move on to the next available target. Source: BBC News UK

A more radical approach to prevention of the spread of armyworms is a virus known as NPV, which is being investigated by researchers from the UK, Canada and Tanzania. According to BBC News, the naturally occurring virus is specifically lethal to army worms, but it appears too late in most years to prevent them causing serious crop damage. Scientists hope to study and harness the virus, to create an effective pest control technique. The last thing Africa needs is another country in the throes of massive food shortage.