Maimuna Abdullahi was sold into marriage by her parents for £120 and abused by her new husband, who locked her away and forced hard labour on her.
When she ran home she was beaten, first by her father, then her husband, and was summarily divorced by her husband for daring to flee – and she is still just 14 years old.
She is one of thousands in Nigeria with similar stories – and, shockingly, her husband blames his beaten former bride for her ordeal, saying she was disobedient and over-educated.
Maimuna’s former husband, Mahammadu Saidu, blames her few years of school for her disobedience. A handsome man of 28 who is obviously proud of his ankle-high boots, he does not deny beating his wife.
‘She had too much ABCD,’ he says. ‘Too much ABCD.’