A Delta State High Court in Asaba sentenced Idris Hassan, 35, to life in prison for raping an eight-year-old girl.
Hassan who was sentenced to life, was arraigned in court on a single count of rape, punishable under Section 218 of the Criminal Code Law Cap C21 Vol. 1 Laws of Delta State of Nigeria 2006.
On August 22, 2022, he was accused of having illicit carnal knowledge of the minor and pled not guilty to the accusation.
The prosecution, led by Mrs Patricia Akamagwuna, Director of the Delta State Ministry of Justice’s Sexual Offenses, Domestic Violence, and Child Rights Unit, presented six witnesses and gave the convict’s confessional statement, who was a gate man to the minor’s neighbor.
According to the prosecution, the youngster was at home with her two older siblings when the defendant enticed her to consume biscuits and then forced himself on her.
In his defense, the defendant rejected the charge and withdrew the confessional statement, claiming that he and the minor had no sexual contact.
In his ruling, trial judge Justice Onome Marshal-Umukoro stated that he believed the prosecution’s evidence, stating that the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt. The convict was then condemned to life in prison by the court.
