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Cleaner bags life jail for sexually assaulting baby in church

Published

4 days ago

June 25, 2024

Cleaner bags life jail for sexually assaulting baby in church

The Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court on Monday sentenced a 27-year-old cleaner, Saviour Udoh, to life imprisonment for sexually assaulting a five-year-old girl on a church premises.

Justice Ramon Oshodi held that the prosecution was able to prove the offence of defilement against the convict without reasonable doubt, stating that the defendant’s action was reprehensible and deserving of the maximum punishment under the law.

Udoh was arraigned on February 5, 2020, on a count of sexual assault by penetration preferred against him by the state, to which he pleaded not guilty.

According to the prosecution counsel, I.D. Solarin, the offence committed by Udoh contravened Section 261 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

The court heard that the incident occurred on December 12, 2018, on the premises of a prominent Pentecostal church in Ikeja, Lagos.

Udoh, who also worked as a cleaner at the church, approached the sleeping child in the children’s department and sexually assaulted her.

The victim’s mother reported the crime to the authorities, leading to Udoh’s arrest.

Delivering his judgment, Justice Oshodi held that the crime committed was a grave one.

He said, “The court has carefully considered the evidence presented during the trial, including the confessional statement, the testimony of the victim, her mother, the IPO, and the medical evidence. The crime he has committed is a grave one as it involves sexual exploitation of a vulnerable child.”

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According to the judge, the victim is still suffering from the effects of the crime committed by the convict. He said, “The impact of your action on the victim and her family cannot be overstated. In her testimony, the victim’s mother stated that she was still taking the victim to the hospital three years after the incident and that the victim was still having discharges.

This statement highlights the long-lasting physical and emotional trauma inflicted upon the child.

“The victim who was only five years old at the time of the incident trusted you, and her mother entrusted her in your care. You breached that trust, most disgustingly, by sexually assaulting the child. Sexual assault by penetration is a serious offence that attracts a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment under Section 261 of the Criminal Law”, he stated.

Justice Oshodi acknowledged the convict’s plea for mercy, saying, “I have considered other factors like the lack of previous convictions and your plea for mercy and sentencing. However, the aggravating factors outweigh any other circumstance.”

He convicted the defendant on the one-count charge of sexual assault by penetration and sentenced him to life imprisonment, ordering that the name of the convict should be registered in the Lagos State Sexual Offences Register.

He said, “Therefore, having found you guilty of sexual assault by penetration, I now sentence you to imprisonment for life as mandated by Section 261 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State. You will serve this sentence in the maximum security custodial centre or wherever the Nigerian Correctional Service may direct you. And your name will be added to the register of sex offenders.”

Cleaner bags life jail for sexually assaulting baby in church

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Pastor, 65, defiles 7-year-old househelp in Anambra

Published

2 hours ago

June 28, 2024

Trends Admin

Pastor, 65, defiles 7-year-old househelp in Anambra

In Anambra State, one Francis Ogwu has allegedly defiled his seven-year-old domestic help in Awka, the state capital.

He has since been arrested by the police after concerned community residents raised alarm over the incident.

Ogwu, 65, is said to be the pastor and General overseer of Jesus House of Joy Church, Awka.

The suspect, who hails from Imo State, has lived with his wife and children in Anambra State for over 30 years.

The state Ministry of Women and Social Welfare has also taken over the case.

Ogwu, who, during interrogations confessed to the Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Ify Obinabo, that he “just fingered the girl once”, denied other allegations of penetration as against what the seven-year-old victim said.

On why he defiled the child, the suspect explained, “I was tempted because my wife usually gives excuses that she’s fasting whenever I want to have quality time with her.”

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Meanwhile, the seven-year-old victim who narrated her side of the story, told the commissioner that her guardian(the suspect) had had carnal knowledge of her three times of which he usually gave her money ranging from N500 to N1,000 after each experience.

She also said that at some point, she was accused by her Oga’s wife of snatching the husband from her, adding that what forced her to leave was the beating she got by the suspect’s daughter over an irrelevant issue.

Speaking, the mother of the victim, a native of Awka, Mrs Destiny Nwabueze, said she handed the daughter over to the Ogwu family due to the relationship they have had over time but was shocked when her daughter returned to her and told her of the development.

Nwabueze revealed that she quickly called the suspect, who upon arrival denied the allegations, which prompted her to involve other persons by raising the alarm.

Reacting to the ugly incident, Obinabo vowed to see that the seven-year-old got the deserved justice and advised women to always be vigilant and stop sex-starving their husbands as that could lead to bad behaviours of some men.

Obinabo, who charged women always to protect their girl child at all costs, noted that defilement is no longer excusable in Anambra State.

Later, the family of the suspect stampeded the office of the commissioner, pleading for pardon, but was asked to head to the police as the case would be charged to court.

Pastor, 65, defiles 7-year-old househelp in Anambra

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I lost over N10m to Abuja market fire, trader laments

Published

3 hours ago

June 28, 2024

Trends Admin

I lost over N10m to Abuja market fire, trader laments

A trader in the Old Karu market in a suburb of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja has lamented her financial loss over the fire that engulfed the market on Thursday evening.

The female trader who spoke to Channels Television in the market on Friday noted that she is feeling pain and worried over the loss to the inferno.

The trader, who was flanked by other women in the video, cried out, saying, “Everything has burnt down. I could not recover anything. This is where we feed from o. Ah, my children’s school fees are there.

“I cannot hold myself, I am in pain, I don’t know if the government can help us. My money that has gone here is over N10 million. I am tired and I don’t know where to start.”

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A combined team of the FCT Fire Service, Federal Fire Service and Julius Berger Fire Service yesterday contained the fire.

However, while stating that the cause of the fire remains unknown, the Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Department bemoaned the lack of access to the market, which is located behind the new market under construction.

The acting Director-General, FEMD, Mrs. Florence Wenegieme, disclosed this on Friday in a statement signed by the Head of Public Affairs, Nkechi Isa.

Wenegieme said, “It was the illegal market or settlement behind the new market under construction that was engulfed by fire. We had enough firetrucks and firemen, but we could not gain access to the market, so we had to break walls to have access to the firefighting hose; that was what caused the delay in putting out the fire,” adding that “no life was lost to the fire incident; goods worth millions of naira were destroyed.”

I lost over N10m to Abuja market fire, trader laments

metro

Boko Haram terrorists surrender To MNJTF in Borno

Published

9 hours ago

June 28, 2024

Trends Admin

MNJTF Troops

Boko Haram terrorists surrender To MNJTF in Borno

The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) has said that three Boko Haram terrorists in Borno have surrendered to the troops.

NAN reports that Abubakar Abdullahi, spokesperson of the MNJTF, announced the development in a statement in Maiduguri.

The terrorists are identified as Rawagana Mustapha, Mustapha Ali and Ibrahim Malam.

Abdullahi said the Boko Haram terrorist caved in as a result of intensified operations targeting terrorist groups within sector of the MNJTF.

The MNJTF is a combined multinational formation comprising military units from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria.

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The headquarters of MNJTF is located in N’Djamena, the capital of Chad, and has the mandate of bringing an end to the Boko Haram insurgency.

”In Cameroon’s Sector I, two terrorist fighters surrendered to the troops at Wulgo,” the statement reads.

”They have been identified as Rawagana Mustapha, 18, and Mustapha Ali, 20.

”Similarly, Sector III in Nigeria reported the surrender of one terrorist fighter, Ibrahim Malam, 28, to the 403 Amphibious Brigade in Baga.

”Preliminary investigations revealed that Malam had been a Boko Haram fighter living in Kwaleram, south of Lake Chad, for six years.

“As Operation Lake Sanity II progresses, MNJTF urges other terrorists to surrender and lay down their arms for lasting peace and prosperity in the region”.