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Man remanded for allegedly raping 11-year-old girl

By Bertram Nwannekanma
21 September 2018   |   4:06 am
A Tinubu Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos has remanded a 28-year-old man identified as Sunday Lazarus, for allegedly defiling an 11-year-old daughter of his sister’s friend. The prosecutor, Sgt. Hafsat Ajibode, told the court that the accused, who committed the offences in July at No. 34, Surulere St., Oworonsoki, Lagos, is facing a two-count charge…

Court

A Tinubu Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos has remanded a 28-year-old man identified as Sunday Lazarus, for allegedly defiling an 11-year-old daughter of his sister’s friend.

The prosecutor, Sgt. Hafsat Ajibode, told the court that the accused, who committed the offences in July at No. 34, Surulere St., Oworonsoki, Lagos, is facing a two-count charge of sexual assault and rape.

“The accused’s sister and the girl’s mother are friends and neighbours; the mother left her in the custody of her friend when she went to the market.

“The accused’s sister, who wanted to buy something outside the compound, left the girl and her six-year-old brother in the room while they were watching cartoon on her phone.

The accused who lives with his sister saw her leaving the house and used the opportunity to sexually assault her.

“The six-year-old boy who the accused thought was too small to understand what happened, was the one that reported what happened to their mother. The medical report showed evidence of penetration,” she said.

Chief Magistrate Tajudeen Elias, however, ordered that the accused be remanded in Ikoyi Prison, pending advice from the Department of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and adjourned the case until Oct. 19.

Meanwhile, the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Opeyemi Oke, has solicited for collective response by relevant stakeholders to check the increasing menace of domestic and sexual violence in the state.

Oke, who spoke at the symposium in commemoration of the domestic and sexual violence awareness month organized by the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team (DSVRT), stressed that cases of domestic and sexual violence has increased tremendously, hence the judiciary is not left in the struggle.
 
She called for collective action against the scourge, saying that the theme of this year’s activities: “Securing the home against violence: Everyone’s Responsibility”, is apt as the judiciary has been dispensing cases of domestic and sexual violence expeditiously.

According to her, perpetrators are being convicted as a result of the enabling environment provided by the justice sector.
 
The Chief Judge, who was represented by Justice Sybil Nwaka, said stigmatisation, which hitherto is the norm of sexual survivors has now been tackled as the justice sector has emboldened survivors to report cases of sexual and domestic violence.

Also the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Adeniji Kazeem, said the theme was developed out of the need to ensure that members of the public are awakened to the fact that violence most of the time comes from the home and is exemplified in the society.

He stressed that it is everyone’s responsibility to look out, report, educate and raise awareness about this menace in our society.

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