Lagos printer bags life jail for defiling 11-year-old neighbour

JUSTICE Rahman Oshodi of the Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court has sentenced a printer, Emmanuel Lakehinde, to life imprisonment for conspiring with an accomplice to defile his neighbour’s 11-year-old daughter (name withheld) in a bathroom.

The judge on Tuesday convicted and sentenced Lakehinde on a two-count charge of defilement and conspiracy, ordering that he serve his term at the Kirikiri Custodial Centre.

Lakehinde was initially arraigned alongside Sesan Oluwole before a magistrate court sometime in 2015, but Oluwole fled after he was granted bail.

The convict later appeared alone in the high court on July 14, 2022, for arraignment, during which he pleaded not guilty.

The prosecution told the court that the convict, “with one other still at large,” unlawfully had sexual intercourse with an 11-year-old girl on December 12, 2013, at Sanusi Street, Somolu, Lagos.

Delivering judgment, Justice Oshodi said he was satisfied that the prosecution proved the case against Lakehinde beyond a reasonable doubt.

He noted that the charge of defilement, which carries a penalty of life imprisonment, reflects the gravity with which the law views the sexual violation of children, “who are amongst the most vulnerable members of our society and who are entitled to protection from predatory conduct by adults.”

The judge said the convict exploited his proximity to the survivor, who lived in the same compound where he worked.

“You breached the trust that should exist between adults and children,” he said.

The judge added that the survivor, who was present in court with her grandfather, was only 11 years old at the time of the offence.

He noted that the survivor and her family rejected the convict’s request for a plea bargain “reasonably so, because your actions have caused irreparable harm to her, and the trauma resulting from your conduct will stay with her for the rest of her life.

“While I have considered all matters presented on your behalf, I must weigh these factors against the importance of protecting children, punishing offenders, deterring others from similar offences, and sending a firm message that the sexual exploitation of children will not be tolerated in our society,” Oshodi said.

Having convicted Lakehinde on the two-count charge, the court sentenced him to life imprisonment for defilement and 10 years’ imprisonment for conspiracy, with the sentences to run concurrently.

The court also ordered that Lakehinde’s name be entered into the Sex Offenders Register, in accordance with Sections 33 and 38 of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Law, 2021.

During trial, the state counsel, Mr. Babajide Boye, called three witnesses: the survivor, her grandfather, and a medical officer, through whom compelling testimonies and exhibits were admitted into evidence.

Lakehinde testified as the sole witness for the defence.

According to the prosecution, the offences committed contravened Sections 137 and 409 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015.