A Lagos State Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced a school teacher, Nwatu Isaac, to life imprisonment for defiling an eight-year-old pupil of El-Bossaa Nursery and Primary School, Epe.
Justice Rahman Oshodi handed down the sentence on Tuesday after finding Isaac guilty of unlawfully having sexual intercourse with the child on March 10, 2022.
The Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency disclosed the development in a statement on Friday, saying the court also ordered that Isaac’s name be entered in the Lagos State Sexual Offenders Register.
According to the agency, the order was made pursuant to Sections 33 and 38 of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Law, 2021.
The prosecution established beyond reasonable doubt that the survivor was a child and that Isaac had sexual intercourse with her.
The survivor, who was nine years old when she testified, identified the convict in court and narrated how he, whom she knew as “Master Isaac,” allegedly took her into the school toilet and sexually assaulted her.
Justice Oshodi reportedly found the child’s testimony credible and consistent.
Her account was also supported by evidence from her mother, who observed blood on the child’s underwear and around her vagina after she returned from school.
Medical evidence presented by the Mirabel Centre further corroborated the prosecution’s case, with the agency stating that the medical findings supported evidence of penetration.
Isaac had denied the allegation and claimed that he did not go beyond the school gate on the day of the incident.
However, the court rejected the defence, noting that the convict’s own testimony placed him at the school at the material time.
Justice Oshodi also dismissed his alibi defence and rejected suggestions that the child might have been abused by her stepsister.
The court equally dismissed the argument that the school toilet was too small for the offence to have occurred.
While sentencing Isaac, the judge said he had abused the trust placed in him by the survivor and her family.
The agency quoted the judge as noting that Isaac was the child’s teacher and had also been entrusted by parents in the community to transport their children.
Beyond the custodial sentence, Justice Oshodi directed the prosecution to take immediate steps under the Victim Assistance and Witness Protection Law, 2022, to ensure that the survivor and her family receive whatever protection and support they require.
Isaac was prosecuted under Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, which prescribes life imprisonment for unlawful sexual intercourse with a child.
The case underscores the legal consequences for sexual offences against children in Lagos State, particularly where the offender occupies a position of trust or authority over the child.
If you want, I can also give you �five much stronger PLATFORM TIMES-style headlines with two riders each, including �an investigative/child-protection angle.
[02/10, 19:27] Daud Olatunji: Here is a stronger PLATFORM TIMES version, retaining careful legal attribution and avoiding any suggestion that the defendants have been convicted:
