The Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court on Monday sentenced a man, Olumuyiwa Adjoto, to life imprisonment for defiling his wife’s six-year-old niece.
Justice Rahman Oshodi, who delivered the judgment, held that the Lagos State Government successfully proved two of the three charges brought against the convict beyond reasonable doubt.
Adjoto had been arraigned on counts of defilement, sexual assault by penetration and indecent treatment of a child.
The court found him guilty of defilement and sexual assault by penetration but discharged him on the count of indecent treatment.
In his ruling, Oshodi described the offences as grievous, noting that the impact of the abuse on the minor could be permanent.
The judge said the evidence before the court established that the child, who had been left in the care of the convict, was subjected to sexual abuse that caused serious physical and psychological harm.
He relied on expert testimony presented by the prosecution, which detailed the immediate and long-term effects of the abuse on the victim, including emotional trauma, behavioural changes and potential challenges in future relationships.
Consequently, the court sentenced Adjoto to life imprisonment on each of the two counts and ordered that the sentences should run concurrently.
Justice Oshodi further directed that the convict’s name be entered in the Lagos State Sex Offenders Register in line with relevant provisions of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Law, 2021.
During the trial, the prosecution, led by state counsel Bukola Okeowo, called four witnesses, including the survivor, her mother, a medical practitioner and an investigating police officer. Adjoto testified in his own defence.
At his arraignment, the prosecution told the court that the offences were committed on April 22, 2022, in the Mowo area of Badagry, Lagos, after the convict’s wife had left the house for the market and entrusted the child to him.
The prosecution said the offences contravened Sections 137 and 261 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.