Justice Abiola Soladoye of the Lagos Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court, Ikeja, has sentenced a teacher, Bright Emenugo, to life imprisonment for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old male student. The state government had charged Emenugo with contravening Section 261 of the Lagos State Criminal Law, 2015.
In her judgment, Justice Soladoye found the defendant guilty as charged and ordered that Emenugo’s name be added to the Lagos State Sex Offenders’ Register. The judge stated that the state had successfully proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt, highlighting the survivor’s testimony that Emenugo instructed him to go to the toilet and wait for him.
Justice Soladoye condemned Emenugo’s immoral and callous conduct, describing it as a disgrace to the teaching profession. She also emphasized the importance of schools speaking up about abuse and reporting such cases to the appropriate authorities.
The survivor, who testified in court at the age of 15, revealed that Emenugo had pulled down his pants and sexually penetrated him when he was 14. The survivor stated that the defendant had threatened him with a bad grade if he refused to comply. Although the survivor could not recall the exact number of times he was assaulted, he confirmed that Emenugo had molested him on multiple occasions.
During the trial, a doctor from the Mirabel Centre testified that the victim’s anus showed signs of consistent penetration, supporting the survivor’s account.
In his defense, Emenugo claimed that he was arrested without knowing the reason and alleged coercion and physical abuse during his interrogation. However, Justice Soladoye deemed his defense to be untruthful and contradictory.
The judge deemed the survivor’s testimony to be truthful, even during cross-examination, along with the supporting evidence provided by the survivor’s aunt, the second prosecution witness.
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