An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado Ekiti has sentenced a 20-year-old man, Olarewaju Seun, to 30 months imprisonment for raping a 3-year-old girl.
The convict was arraigned before the court on June 6, 2022, on one count of rape.
The charge read, “That Olarewaju Seun, on August 6, 2021, at Ado Ekiti within the jurisdiction of this court, raped a three-year-old girl, contrary to Section 31(1) of the Child Rights Law, Cap C7, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.
“The mother of the victim had in her evidence before the court said that her daughter did not allow her to wash her private part when she was bathing for her, adding that “when I checked, I saw it red and swollen. I was so scared when I asked what happened to her bum, she repeatedly said, it was Seun.”
The woman said that when she got the full picture of what happened to her daughter, she reported the matter to the police, who later took over the matter.
The prosecutor, Kunle-Shina Adeyemo, called three witnesses and tendered the defendant’s statement, pictures of the victim and defendant, and a medical report, among others, as exhibits.
The defendant, who spoke through his counsel, Ekene Luke, prayed to the court to temper justice with mercy and called four witnesses.
Delivering his judgement on Thursday, Justice Familoni said, “I believe the defendant, as a young person, deserves a second chance to redeem himself and be a good citizen. He cannot do that if I sentence him to life imprisonment.
“Therefore, I am inclined to temper justice with mercy to afford him an opportunity for redemption. Therefore, the defendant, Olarewaju Seun, is sentenced to 30 calendar months’ imprisonment without an option of a fine; the sentence is to run effectively from September 20, 2021, when he was rearrested by the police and kept in detention.”
