Justice Abiola Soladoye of an Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court has sentenced Kayode Abegunde to life imprisonment for defiling his daughter.
The prosecutor counsel, Olushola Sholeye, had filed a three-count charge – defilement, sexual assault by penetration and child labour – contrary to sections 137, 261 and 2017 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
During the trial, the prosecution called three witnesses, including a social volunteer, Ambibola Ojoshoke, from a non-governmental organisation, Chamary Foundation, a police officer attached to Dopemu Police Station and the survivor who confirmed to the court that the defendant was her father.
The convict testified for himself.
The survivor had told the court that she was eight years old when her father came to the village to pick her from her mother, saying he wanted her to enrol in a better school in Lagos.
She said on getting to Lagos, her father took her to his employer’s house, Mr Akpabio, where she lived for two years.
She also told the court that the security man at Mr Akpabio’s house had sex with her when she went to give him food.
She said after reporting to her father, her father took her to his house that night and also defiled her.
“My father put his penis inside my viagina. I can’t count how many times,’’ she added.
He told me not to tell anybody, that if I tell anybody he would kill me.
“I told my cousin Deborah who also told me he had done the same thing to her.”
Abegunde pleaded not guilty to the charges when arraigned on October 18, 2022.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Soladoye convicted the defendant of counts 1 and 2.
The judge discharged the convict of count three on child labour
Justice Soladoye held that the prosecution had proved the charge of defilement and sexual assault by penetration beyond doubt.
Sholadoye said the evidence of the social worker corroborated with that of the IPO who investigated the case,
“The prosecution proved the offence of defilement on count one and sexual assault by penetration count two but failed woefully to prove the case of child labour count three,” she said.
“The defendant, Kayode Abegunde is sentenced to life imprisonment in respect to count one and two bordering on sexual assault by penetration and for the offence of child abuse.
She ordered that his name should be registered in the Lagos Book for sexual offenders.
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
