Sex offence campaigners score victory as Lagos man is sentenced to 15 years for defiling eight year old

SEX offence campaigners have secured a major victory over the last week when a 39 year old man was sentenced to 15 years in prison by an Ikeja high court in Lagos State for defiling an eight-year-old pupil.

Femi Anthony, was sentenced by Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo, who convicted him after considering all the evidence and ruled that he was satisfied that the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt. Mr Anthony, who was 32 years old when he committed the offence, was first arraigned on June 23, 2014.

Justice Taiwo ruled: “I find you guilty of the defilement of  the pupil and therefore sentence you to 15 years imprisonment with no option of fine. Incidences of the offence of defilement and rape has increased astronomically in our society and this sentence should serve as a deterrent. "

In his ruling, Justice Taiwo held that the convict’s claims that the complainant’s mother operated an illegal clinic and that she conducted an extra-marital affair were baseless due to lack of evidence.  During the trial, the prosecution led by Mrs KO Sarumi said that on May 20, 2012, the convict, who resided in the ground floor of a high-rise building sneaked into the pupil’s apartment upstairs and defiled her.

Mrs Sarumi told the court that the pupil was studying when the convict overpowered her and defiled her while her mother was attending to other issues in the premises. During the case, the prosecution, which called four witnesses, including the pupil’s mother and a medical doctor, said that the convict had sexual intercourse with the girl, which caused her stomach upset.

Mr Anthony  said that he was being falsely accused by the complainant’s mother because she did not want him to reveal that she operated an illegal clinic and that he had caught her committing adultery.

He added: “I entered the complainant’s room to scold her for calling my name when I went out to turn on the generator. I only sat on her back to show her that I was stronger than her."