( CNN ) -- The Brazilian government is investigating the case of a 15-year-old girl who allegedly was raped and tortured after being put in a prison cell with 20 male inmates , officials said . The girl -- who said she was forced to have sex for food and suffered burns and other abuse -- has denounced police in the small town of Abaetetuba for keeping her in the cell . She is now in a witness protection program . The case has sparked outrage among human rights groups as well as government officials . `` This is a shame , a shame in the whole system , '' said Claudio Puty , chief of staff for the governor 's office in Para , one of the largest states in Brazil . `` There is a total collapse in the jail system in Brazil , but this is no excuse for them to wash their hands and do nothing , '' he said . `` We are doing all we can to punish these policemen . '' The victim -- who has been identified only by her initials , L.A.B . -- was jailed for attempted theft , and was sent to a police station in Abaetetuba , about 50 miles ( 80 kilometers ) from the provincial capital of Belem , according to the O Liberal newspaper . She remained in custody for about three weeks . After receiving an anonymous phone call , two social workers tried to visit the girl in jail , but police barred them from doing so , the newspaper reported . One of them , Maria Imaculada , told O Liberal the young woman was courageous and talked to them in front of several policemen . In testimony before a tribunal , the girl told authorities she asked to speak to her relatives , but the police never responded , O Liberal reported , citing court documents . She testified that when she was forced into a bathroom , `` I screamed and screamed , but to no avail , '' the report said . The girl 's father , who is also in a witness protection program , told reporters police asked him to forge the girl 's birth certificate , but he refused . He said police threatened him and even questioned his paternity rights . `` She was humiliated and sexually assaulted in an Abaetetuba cell by those who should be defending her rights , '' he told O Liberal . The Brazilian government has sent two commissions to investigate . Since the case made national headlines , other cases of women being sent to male prison cells have surfaced . `` What we are seeing here is endemic , '' Tim Cahill of Amnesty International said . Watch Cahill discuss a 'horrific ' level of abuse » . Human rights groups and more than 16 local associations are planning a large protest this Sunday , the international Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women . E-mail to a friend .
Teenage girl says she was placed in a separate cell with 20 male inmates . Alleged girl says she was raped and forced to have sex for food . The girl and her father are in a witness protection program . The Brazilian government sends two commissions to investigate .