A high court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has sentenced the one-time Chief Pharmacist of National Hospital, Abuja, and Senior Special Adviser (Technical) to the Director of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development to life jail for defiling a minor and for sodomy.
Dr. Abubakar Mustapha Danraka, reportedly lured the victim to his apartment and had anal intercourse with him after knocking him out with a drink.
Speaking about the landmark ruling in the implementation of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015, the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in a statement on Tuesday, by its spokesman, Vincent Adekoye, disclosed that the High Court sitting in Kubwa, Abuja and presided over by Hon. Justice Asmau Akanbi-Yusuf, on Monday convicted and sentenced Danraka, Ph.D. to life imprisonment for rape (Sodomy) under Section 1 of the VAPP Act of 2015.
Adekoye noted that the ruling ended the three-year-old controversy surrounding this celebrated case which had attracted much attention from stakeholders across the country.
He further revealed that the convict was arrested on March 27th, 2020, for defiling a minor (name withheld), who happened to be his neighbour, in the estate where he lives in Abuja.
The former Chief Pharmacist was charged to court through a charge dated 9th August 2021. He was arraigned on 5th April 2022 where he pleaded “not guilty.”
Justice Asmau Akanbi-Yusuf in her verdict said the prosecution team from NAPTIP sufficiently proved the charge beyond a reasonable doubt.
Reacting to the judgment, the Director General of NAPTIP, Prof. Fatima Waziri–Azi, hailed the judiciary for its doggedness in ensuring that justice is served under the VAPP Act.
She said, “I want to specially commend the Judiciary for its sustained collaboration, and support in the implementation of the VAPP/Law in the Country which has culminated in this landmark judgment. This is a victory for us as a country.
“In our bid to make Nigeria a violence–free nation, in collaboration with all our esteemed partners and stakeholders, we will continue to scale our efforts in ensuring more convictions and less impunity,” the NAPTIP Director General stated.
This is the third rape conviction in 2023 secured by NAPTIP in the FCT.
