“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves; the Holy Bible admonished.
When the parents of Oluwatosin took the counsel of their landlord, 63-year-old pastor, Ajayi Famakinwa, to bring him their 15-year-old daughter for ‘deliverance’, they believed he was truly going to exorcise the evil spirits he claimed to have been troubling her.
As it stands, an Ondo State High Court has sentenced ‘pastor’ to 18 years imprisonment for raping and impregnating his 15-year-old tenant’s daughter.
Daily Trust Saturday reports that Famakinwa was jailed by Hon. Justice Yemi Fasanmi after he was found guilty of rape and defilement of the teenager.
In February 2022, Ajayi was hauled to court on court on two counts of rape and defilement, sexual abuse and exploitation.
He was said to have committed the offence on 13 April 2021, at Ayetoro Street, Ayede Ogbese Area, in Akure North local government area of Ondo state, in contravention of Section 31(1) of the Child’s Right Law, Laws of Ondo State, 2012.
The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The State Prosecutor, H.M Falowo, told the Court that the defendant had unlawful sexual intercourse with the victim, and it resulted in pregnancy.
While proving the offence committed by the convict, Ms Falowo called four witnesses including the victim’s mother and tendered four exhibits which were admitted in evidence by the court.
The confessional statements of the convict where he admitted being responsible for the girl’s pregnancy and the photographs of the victim during pregnancy including five litres keg of water and anointing oil were parts of the exhibits tendered before the court.
According to her, the defendant who was the landlord to the victim’s parents disguised under the pretence of healing her of demonic spirit to commit the offence.
Justice Fasanmi who condemned the convict’s act of impregnating the young girl and turning her into a struggling single mother added: “The defendant’s conduct, his admission of the crime to the Divisional Police Officer at Ayede Ogbese on October 17, 2021, in his voluntary confessional statement to be responsible for the pregnancy and other evidence of the prosecution amounted to sufficient corroboration that the defendant committed the offence.
“Based on the above and in strict adherence to the provisions of the law, I have no alternative than to sentence the defendant accordingly and I so hold.
”Though the defendant appeared remorseful in court, he is convicted as charged and sentenced to 18 years imprisonment.”
Last year, an Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado Ekiti sentenced one Durodola Kayode Ogundele to life imprisonment for raping an 85-year-old grandmother.
The convict was arraigned before Justice Monisola Abodunde on one count charge bordering on rape.
The charge read that ”Durodola Kayode Ogundele, on the 15th day of June 2021 at Ayetoro Ekiti in Ido/Osi Local Government Area of Ekiti State, within the jurisdiction of the honourable court, did rape an eighty-five years old woman.
”The offence is contrary to section 2 of the Ekiti State Gender-Based Violence (Prohibition) Law, 2019.
In her testimony before the court, the victim’s daughter, Opeyemi Bolaji said, I came to give my mother breakfast, on getting to her, I found her in an unsettling physical condition, after finished eating and upon further prompting to find out the reason for her restlessness, she told me that the defendant did not allow her to sleep, she said the defendant came to her room around 1:00 am, he rubbed a balm all over her body, including her anus and vagina, massaged her body, sucked her breast and forcefully has sex with her, she concluded.
When I tried to find out from the defendant, he said, my mother must have been dreaming.
The matter was first reported at Ido Ekiti Police Station before it was transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department of the Nigerian Police Force, Ado Ekiti.
To prove his case, the prosecutor, Barrister Folasade Alli called five witnesses including the Investigating Police Officer and a Medical Doctor, she tendered the victim’s statement, the defendant’s statement, and a medical report from Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti among others as exhibits while the defendant spoke in his own defense through his counsel, M.O. Folorunso, he called no witnesses.
In her judgment, Justice Monisola Abodunde said, I am therefore not in doubt that prosecution has finally established through circumstantial evidence, that it is cogent, compelling and most conclusively, that the defendant intentionally and calculatedly penetrated the vagina and anus of the victim with his penis after rubbing a dark balm on her body and private part.
On the whole, I find that the prosecution has discharged an evidential burden placed on them in law by circumstantial evidence, supported by the totality of the combined evidence of the witnesses, corroborated by the extra-judicial statements of the victim made at the earliest opportunity.
The defendant is found guilty as charged for Rape contrary to Section 2 of the Ekiti State Gender-Based Violence (Prohibition Law) 2019 and he is convicted, and accordingly sentenced to Life Imprisonment in line with Section 2 (2) of Ekiti State Gender-Based Violence (Prohibition Law) 2019.
