An Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court have sentenced a painter, Sunday Ajibade, to life imprisonment for defiling a 14-year-old daughter of his neighbour. Justice Abiola Soladoye held that the prosecution had proved beyond a reasonable doubt, the charge of defilement against Ajibade, a resident of Abule-Egba in Lagos.
File photo: Guardian Nigeria Soladoye also held that the court found the survivor’s evidence straight, neat and uncontroversial as she identified the defendant, who sent her to bring his torn clothing from the room and hurriedly followed her, pulled out a knife, threatened her and forcefully had sex with her. According to Soladoye, the defendant is a pathological liar who feeds on the innocence of the survivor. “The survivor told this court that she went to sew a piece of cloth at her neighbour’s house, who is a tailor when the defendant beckoned on her to help him bring his torn clothing from his room. “She said that as soon as she entered his room, the defendant ran after her, pulled out a knife, pointed same at her, threatened to kill her if she told anyone what he was about to do to her and forcefully had canal knowledge of her. “The survivor said she saw blood on her clothes when she got home and reported it to her mother when she came back from the market. “The second prosecution witness, who is the mother of the survivor said that the defendant lived three houses from their house and that she was not at home on the day of the incident. “She told this court that she noticed her daughter getting lean and refusing to eat and narrated her ordeal which made her report the case at Oko-Oba Police Station.” The judge said that the survivor’s mother testified that the defendant tried to run away but he was later arrested to face the music and that all efforts made by the defendant’s family to beg the mother of the survivor proved abortive as she was bent on getting justice for her daughter. Soladoye said that the issues raised by the defence that the evidence of the survivor was not corroborated and that there was no medical report did not hold water. She said this was because the prosecution had proved each of the essential ingredients of defilement against the defendant. According to her, the child who appeared before this court is underage. “She stated clearly and I believe her that the defendant forcefully had sex with her as her consent could not have been obtained. “On the issue of corroboration, the testimony of the survivor was corroborated by her mother’s testimony. “On the issue of the prosecution not tendering a medical report, it is right law, that tendering of medical report is not mandatory to establish the offence of defilement. “Upon careful review of all the evidence tendered before this honourable court, both oral and documentary, the court finds the prosecution witnesses truthful and credible in their testimonies. “The confessional statement of the defendant which was tendered and admitted into evidence in this case showed he committed the offence and his denial while giving his evidence is a means to lie his way through.” Soladoye, thereafter, pronounced the defendant guilty as charged and sentenced him to life imprisonment. She ordered that Ajibade should have his name registered in the sexual offences register as maintained by Lagos State Government. The judge also cautioned children to be very careful while running errands for irresponsible adults like the defendant. “It is becoming a recurring decimal that these kids, whenever they are sent to buy anything, they are told to drop in the room. “In this case, where the defendant told the girl to bring his torn clothing from his room but he went after her, pounced on her and forcefully defiled her. “Kids should learn from this and avoid being entrapped by irresponsible paedophiles like this defendant. “Children should be schooled on how to run errands and they should avoid going to rooms to deliver such messages as this is becoming very dangerous and it is a modus-operandi adopted by paedophiles,” she said. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the state counsel, Ms Abimbola Abolade, called two witnesses while the defendant testified as the sole witness. According to the prosecution, the offence violated Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015.
