Lagos Court Sentences Man to Life Imprisonment for Defiling 11-Year-Old Girl

An Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court has sentenced a man, Idris Ashimiyu, to life imprisonment for defiling an 11-year-old girl in Lagos State.

Justice Abiola Soladoye delivered the judgment on Wednesday after finding Ashimiyu guilty of a one-count charge of defilement brought against him by the Lagos State Government.

The convict had pleaded not guilty to the charge when he was arraigned.

During the trial, the prosecution, led by A.A. Adeniyi, called the survivor as its sole witness. She told the court that she was 11 years old when the incident occurred and 13 at the time of her testimony.

The girl said she knew Ashimiyu, who reportedly ran errands and washed cars within their compound.

According to her testimony, she was outside when Ashimiyu came upstairs, began touching her and subsequently sexually assaulted her.

The court heard that the girl’s grandmother later discovered what had happened after going to look for her and finding her with the convict. Ashimiyu was subsequently taken to a police station.

In his defence, the convict’s lawyer, A.O. Ayode, called a witness identified as Ibrahim, who told the court that he was not present when the incident occurred and had only learnt about it from a neighbour.

The witness further said Ashimiyu had told him that he did not rape the girl but was only playing with her.

In her judgment, Justice Soladoye said she carefully considered the evidence presented by both sides, including the survivor’s age, the consistency of her testimony and the issue of consent.

The judge found the girl’s testimony credible and held that the prosecution had established that she was a child at the time of the incident and could not legally consent to the sexual act.

She ruled that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and consequently convicted Ashimiyu.

The court sentenced him to life imprisonment and ordered that his name be entered in the Lagos State Sexual Offenders Register.