AN Ikeja Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences Court on Wednesday, October 12, 2022, sentenced a man, Isiaka Adeoye, to life imprisonment for raping a 17-year-old on a farm on January 22, 2020, at Graceland Estate, Idimu.
According to media reports, Justice Abiola Soladoye held that the prosecution proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt, adding that the testimony of the survivor corroborated the evidence of the investigative police officer and medical reports tendered in evidence.
The judge held that the testimonies of prosecution witnesses were coherent, adding that there was no substantial contradiction to raise reasonable doubt.
The judge said: “I believe the testimony of the survivor in total, as she eloquently and brilliantly told the court that the defendant had a condom on before he had sex with her.
“The survivor told the court that her aunt sent her to do some work for her at her farm where the defendant works and that the defendant sent her to fetch water. When she came back, she met the defendant drunk and he asked her if she wanted to have fun and he ended up having sex with her.
“She said it was the farm manager that reported the case to the survivor’s sister when she narrated her ordeal in the hands of the defendant. Evidence of the three prosecution witnesses has sufficient proof that the defendant had sexual intercourse with the survivor.”
She said the final address of the defence, no matter how beautifully written, could not amount to vindicating the charge of defilement against Adeoye.
“Evidence before this court shows that the defendant forcefully had sex with the survivor as this is corroborated in the medical report that there were bruises in her vagina, which can be a result of the struggle between her and the defendant.
“This should serve as a deterrent to others; adults should not take undue advantage of children and defile their purity. The defendant was busy telling lies before this court but the court is not fooled.
The defendant is hereby found guilty as charged and hereby sentenced to life imprisonment. He should have his name written in the Lagos State Sexual Offenders Register,” she held.
Mrs Soladoye then advised the survivor to be sensitive, adding that there was a need for sex education, moral re-awakening, and training of underaged people in order to maintain sexual purity in society.
“Lessons to the young ones here is that it is not good not to run errands for elderly ones, but the younger ones must be very careful not to fall prey in the hands of sexual predators. The survivor, in this case, was insensitive; as a 17-year-old, she ought to be proactive and run for her life when she saw a condom on the penis of the defendant.
“Instead, she waited until the defendant forcefully had his way and had sex with her.
“There is a need to educate our children more on sex, as we now have more sexual predators in our society,” she said.
The prosecution said that the convict committed the offence in violation of Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
(NAN)
