Court Jails Cleric For Life For Defiling Neighbour’s Daughter

Justice Ramon Oshodi of the Lagos State Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences Court, has convicted and sentenced a 50-year-old Islamic Cleric, Isa Mustapha, to life imprisonment for defiling his neighbour’s eight-year-old daughter.

Justice Oshodi sent Mustapha to jail for the rest of his life after he held that the prosecution had successfully proven the ingredients of defilement against the convict.

The Lagos State government has arraigned the Cleric before the court on a one-count charge of defilement contrary to Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015.

During the trial, the prosecution presented four witnesses and tendered four exhibits while the convict testified in his own defence.

In his judgment, the judge held that, “In defilement, consent of the survivor is immaterial as a child cannot give consent. I believe the evidence of the survivor’s father when he said she was eight years old when the incident happened.

“The prosecution has successfully proved the first ingredient of defilement.

“The survivor, who identified the defendant as “Alfa” who lives downstairs of their house, testified that her mother sent her on an errand to buy pepper in which the defendant told her to bring onions for him.

“On her way back to her house, he lured her inside his room.

“The survivor told this court that the defendant slept with her four times and that the defendant lives alone in his apartment.

“The testimony of the survivor was impeccably clear as there was no inconsistency in her evidence,” Justice Oshodi held.

The judge further stated that the defendant’s oral submission, medical report and the investigative police officer corroborated the evidence before the court.

He held, “the defendant’s oral admission that he was at the scene of the incident and that he only fingered the survivor, corroborated the evidence before the court that the defendant was with the survivor at the scene of the incident.

“The defendant is hereby found guilty as charged. He is sentenced to life imprisonment,” Justice Oshodi ruled.

The judge also directed that the convict’s name should be entered into the register of sexual offenders of Lagos State.