An Ikeja High Court in Lagos State on Wednesday sentenced a man, Dennis Okubiat, to 20 years’ imprisonment for defiling a church member, who is a 12-year-old minor (name withheld).
Justice Ismail Ijelu held that the court accepted the entirety of the survivor’s evidence as it aligned with the medical report.
Ijelu said the prosecution, led by the state counsel, Babatunde Sunmonu, proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
According to him: “The survivor, in her testimony, said that she went for evangelism and in the process went to check on the convict because he had not been coming to church.
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“According to her, the church pastor had said they should visit members that had not been seen in church for some time.
“The survivor said she went to visit the convict because she respected him as an elder of their church and then helped him wash plates and clean his house.
“She said the defendant gave her garri and groundnuts to drink and she slept off in the process, but she saw a white substance in her private parts when she woke up.”
Ijelu said the survivor testified that the defendant threatened to kill her if she told anyone.
He said: “The survivor in her evidence said he did it several times for three months.”
The judge said he accepted the entirety of the evidence provided by the prosecution though the defence tried to discredit it.
He also held that Okubiat did not deny the testimony of the victim nor challenged it.
According to him: “The court finds that this piece of evidence by Prosecution Witness 2 (survivor) unequivocally proved the ingredients of the offence of defilement.
“The act of Okubiat was premeditated, the victim was vulnerable and he took advantage of her.
“The court finds that the act of the convict harmed the victim and caused her extreme psychological impact and social impact.”
The judge, thereafter, convicted Okubiat and sentenced him to 20 years imprisonment.
“Okubiat is hereby sentenced to 20 years imprisonment to run from the day he was arrested,” he said.
Sumonu told the court that the convict committed the offence on September 6, 2021 about 10am.
The prosecutor submitted that Okubiat had unlawful sexual intercourse with the minor without her consent.
According to him, the offence contravenes Section 137 of the criminal law of Lagos State, 2015.
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