Justice Rahman Oshodi of the Lagos State Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court in Ikeja has convicted and sentenced a 53-year-old trader, Kenneth Mba, to life imprisonment for defiling his friend’s 12-year-old daughter.
Justice Oshodi sent Mba to prison for the rest of his life after holding that the state had proven the one-count charge of defilement of a minor brought against the convict beyond all reasonable doubt.
The Lagos State government had accused the convict of committing the offence sometime in April 2021 on Ogunjimi Street, Iwaya, in the Yaba area of the state.
The prosecutor, Ms Inumidun Solaarin, who told the court that the offence contravenes Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015, called three witnesses, while the convict testified as a sole witness.
In his judgment, Justice Oshodi held that the convict’s confessional statement that he defiled the survivor in his room three times and gave her N200 each time after sex was corroborated with the survivor’s testimony.
The judge, however, stated that the convict’s oral evidence before him to deflate from the charge and confession did not hold water.
The court held that the convict was a pathological liar whose oral testimony was an afterthought as it lacked credibility.
Justice Oshodi also stated that the convict betrayed the trust the survivor’s father had in him, as they had been friends for over 20 years.
He further held that the survivor’s evidence was unequivocal, straight forward and full of clarity and that the confessional statement was consistent with the evidence before the court.
The judge therefore held, “I must accept that his confessional statement is accurate as it is consistent, unequivocal and corroborated the prosecutor’s evidence.
“The medical report also corroborated the prosecution witnesses’ evidence.
“You have been convicted of defilement, and the offence is grave as it carries a mandatory sentence. I hereby sentence you to life imprisonment.’’
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