Okada rider bags life imprisonment for raping passenger
Justice Hakeem of a Lagos High Court, Ikeja, yesterday, sentenced a 33-year-old motorcyclist, Michael Ahmed to life imprisonment for raping his passenger.
Lagos High Court, Ikeja. Photo/Channelstv
The judge convicted Ahmed after finding him guilty of the charge brought against him by the state government.
The judge held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
The survivor was 12-year-old while the convict was 24-year-old at the time he committed the offence in 2013.
While delivering his judgment, Justice Oshodi held that the evidence of the victim is concise and clear, while that of the defendant is distorted.
“The defendant tried to distort the facts in the timing of the incident, how he got to the police station and the name he was called on the day of the incident. There is a clear evidence that the defendant forced herself on the victim.
“There is also proof that the defendant bit the survivor on the shoulder. The defendant is hereby convicted on the two-count charge of rape and assault against him. The court has clearly considered the allocutos presented by the defence counsel. However, the offence of rape is mandatory and the court has no power to pronounce a lesser offence,” the court ruled.
The court therefore sentenced the defendant to the statutory three years jail term for serious assault and life imprisonment for rape.
The jail term took effect from July 25, 2013 when he had been in detention.
Earlier before sentence, the defence counsel, Mr. Ramon Bashir, pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy, noting that the defendant had no previous criminal record.
“My Lord the convict is a young man who I believe has turned a new leaf. It is evident before the court that he never committed any offences before. The convict is pleading before the court to temper Justice with mercy.”
During the trial, the prosecution had called four witnesses including the survivor, her father, an Investigative Police Officer (IPO) and a medical doctor from the Ikorodu General Hospital, while the convict, his sister and a vigilante, who knew the defendant, testified for the defence.
The prosecution team Mr. M.T. Adewuyi and Ms A.A. Asiwaju, had told court that the defendant committed the offences on July 9, 2013, at about 11.30 p.m. on New Covenant Estate, Gaga area of Ikorodu in Lagos.
The team said that the survivor was raped by the defendant, while she was on her way from church.
said the survivor and her two sisters were at a Berger Bus Stop when they called the defendant to carry them to the house. The defendant could not carry the three of them at once.
As a result of that, the survivor told the defendant to drop her two sisters first at home and come back to pick her.
The prosecution submitted that the defendant told the survivor he was trying to avoid the police at the estate and diverted into another route. He pretended that the bike was faulty and the survivor got down from the bike to check what was wrong.
The defendant pounced on the survivor, strangled her, hit her head in the mud and raped her. The survivor fought back, but he bit her on the shoulder and threatened to kill her if she did not allow him to have his way.”
The defendant was arrested at his house and taken to the police station by the security of the estate, after the survivor narrated her ordeal to them.
His offence was contrary to Section 172 and 258 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2011.
Get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.
0 Comments
We will review and take appropriate action.