A police inspector, Lawrence Ojo, has narrated to the Lagos State Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences Court how a middle-aged man, Odigomma Ude, allegedly defiled a 13-year-old boy (names withheld) by having anal sex with him.
Ojo, who testified in the ongoing trial of Ude over the alleged offence, told the trial judge, Justice Ramon Oshodi, that the defendant sexually assaulted the boy, who is speech impaired, between May and August 2021 at Blue Area of Ojo in Lagos.
The witness, who was part of a team of policemen that investigated the crime, also claimed the defendant who resides in the Ajah area of Lagos goes all the way to the Ajangbadi where the survivor lives with his mother to perpetrate the act.
The defendant is standing trial for a one-count charge of alleged sexual assault by penetration contrary to Section 261 of the Criminal Law Ch. C17, Vol.3. Laws of Lagos State, 2015.
He, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Inspector Ojo in his testimony told Justice Oshodi that the boy’s mother reported the matter to the police.
The police officer, who told the court that he has 23 years of experience in investigating sexual offences testified that the defendant in his statement stated that he met the survivor who had speech impairment and decided to help him financially.
The witness further informed the court that the defendant took the boy to a bar where they both had pepper soup and a drink.
Justice Oshodi adjourned till February 16, 2023, for the defence to open its case.
