An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti has ordered an 18-year-old man, Tope Ojo Dada, to be detained at the juvenile centre in Ado Ekiti for raping a 12-year-old girl at GRA, Ado-Ekiti, on August 11, 2020.
The victim, in her statement to the police, said while hawking groundnuts during the COVID-19 lockdown on New Iyin Road, an Okada man stopped her and told her to follow him to his house as his neighbours wanted to buy much.
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She said, “When we got to his house, there was nobody. I was afraid and decided to run away. He seized my groundnut tray and took it to his room. I was crying but there was nobody to help me. He brought the groundnuts out and asked me to pick up the tray and leave.
“While trying to carry my tray, he grabbed me and carried me to his room. I was shouting so he covered my mouth and increased the volume of his tape. He removed my pant and had sex with me. I started bleeding profusely.
A passerby who heard my voice called neighbours. They forced the door open and I was rescued and he was apprehended and handed over to the police.’’
The prosecutor, Barrister Julius Ajibare, called two witnesses and tendered the defendant’s statement and medical report as exhibits.
The defendant spoke through his counsel, Christopher Omokhafe, but called no witnesses.
Justice Adekunle Adeleye ruled that, “I have no doubt that the complainant has established beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant raped the victim on 10/08/2020.
“He was a child at the time of commission of the offence by the definition of who a child is under the provisions of the Child’s Rights Law. He had not attained the age of majority at the time the offence of rape was committed.
“I hereby order that the defendant be detained at the Juvenile Correctional Centre in Ado-Ekiti at the pleasure of the governor.”
