The Ikeja Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences Court has sentenced a lesson teacher identified as Joseph Ibanga to life imprisonment for defilement and impregnating a 14-year-old girl.
The defendant had no witness and spoke in his defence at the trial.
It was gathered that he committed the offence between January and March 2019 at No.12, Iresi Street, Orile-Agege, Lagos.
The victim’s aunt had hired
Ibanga to teach her niece at home because she was not in school for a while owing to her slow learning capacity.
He, however, raped the minor whenever he went to teach her. She subsequently became pregnant and had a baby.
In a court ruling on Monday, June 6, Justice Abiola Soladoye of the Ikeja Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences Court declared that the prosecution proved the charge of defilement against the convict beyond doubt.
Justice Abiola ruled as follows;
“The survivor was a minor and her consent is immaterial. The evidence before the court showed that the defendant had sex with the victim in her home and in the defendant’s own matrimonial home. She subsequently became pregnant and had a baby.
“The medical report corroborated the evidence against the defendant. The defendant is responsible for the act and there is evidence before the court to prove same.
“The survivor identified the defendant as her lesson teacher and the person who had sexual intercourse with her without her consent.
“The defendant is very ungrateful and wicked, ravished the student with impunity and taught her nonsense. Ibanga has brought ridicule to the teaching profession and this punishment will serve as a lesson to him and warning to others.
“The defendant is hereby found guilty as charged based on the avalanche of evidence against him, and he is sentenced to life imprisonment.”
The judge, hence, ordered the convict to enter his name into the register of sexual offenders of Lagos State.
