- Said to have been having carnal knowledge of his two daughters
A lawn tennis coach in Osun State, Yinka Akinrinade, has been accused of defiling and impregnating his 14-year-old trainees during a tennis competition she participated in, in Lagos State.
He also reportedly had carnal knowledge of his 13-year old daughter on the same day in September this year. It was gathered that the two girls are athletes under the coach’s supervision. Meanwhile, the 14-year-old trainee, was confirmed pregnant a month after the incident.
Narrating how the incident happened, the trainee (name withheld) who is now 13 weeks pregnant, said that her coach, Akinriande, allegedly took advantage of her on the pretence that he wanted to conduct fitness training on her. He allegedly called her from her room in the hotel where they lodged to his own room.
“We went for a competition in Lagos State. And during our stay, the coach called me to his hotel room and said he wanted to carry out fitness test on me; that he always does the same to all girls under him.
“He told me to lie on the bed and remove my dress. That was how he defiled me and told me not to tell anyone. He threatened to deal with me if I told my parents. After that, he told me to call his daughter too for the same ‘fitness’ training.
“I asked Mary what happened when she came back to our room and she was just smiling. The coach was the one who defiled me. I have never had any intimacy with a man before. The coach even told me that, that was how he always had sex with his two daughters.
“I got to know I was pregnant when I started falling sick and my parents took me for a test. He was not drunk as he claimed. I want justice from the government, he should face the consequence of his action,” the pregnant victim said.
Some stakeholders in the Osun State Sports Council, however, confided in The Point that the coach had been committing incest with his two daughters before the incident in Lagos.
Meanwhile, Akinrinade did not deny or confirm raping the young girls because, according to him, he was under the influence of alcohol when the incidents happened.
He said in an interview, “I remember that when we went for a competition in Lagos, I complained of pile and my colleague, Coach Saka, introduced a herb to me, he said it was non alcoholic and that I wouldn’t be intoxicated. I don’t drink alcohol, but unfortunately, I didn’t know the said pile herb was prepared with alcohol.
“Immediately I drank the herb, I was unconscious. I can’t remember what happened after that. I have never tasted alcohol in my life, that would be the first time I would experience alcohol. So, I can’t remember what I did with the girls. It was the following morning that I found myself naked in their room. I asked them if anything happened between us and they said nothing happened. Everything ended there.
“After we returned from another competition in Delta State, the two trainees fell sick. I took my own to hospital and it was revealed that she had typhoid and ulcer. I called the mother of the other trainee to take her to the hospital and I was persistent on that till after two weeks before her mother could take her to the hospital.
“When the mother called to inform me that the trainee was pregnant, I questioned who owned the pregnancy and how it came to be. Her mother later called back and told me they were given a wrong test result, that her daughter was not pregnant.
“Later, I received a call to come to the Sports Council, Stadium, Osogbo where I met the trainee and her mother. A colleague of mine called me aside and informed me that I was accused of having carnal knowledge of the trainee. Then, my mind went back to what happened in Lagos. I cannot say if I am responsible for the pregnancy or not. I didn’t know what happened that night.”
However, the parents of the 14-year-old girl have called on the Osun Sports Council and the state government to investigate the allegations and ensure justice is served.
