Eze Chukwuma, a skilled artisan, received his sentence on Monday, September 18, from the Lagos State Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court, situated in Ikeja.
Justice Abiola Soladoye, the presiding judge, delivered the verdict, affirming that the prosecution had effectively substantiated the two charges of sexual abuse against Chukwuma.
Judge Soladoye highlighted the compelling evidence provided by prosecution witnesses, which corroborated the accounts of the victims. She emphasized the significance of the defendant’s admission, obtained during cross-examination, that he had engaged in sexual acts with his two daughters.
The judge decried the defendant’s reprehensible incestuous relationship with his daughters, which had commenced following the death of his wife in 2008. The survivors revealed that their biological father had been sexually abusing them since their mother’s tragic death during childbirth.
Judge Soladoye noted, “The elder daughter was just nine years old at the time. Despite the children’s attempts to disclose their father’s actions to their relatives in the village, no action was taken.”
She continued, “Upon returning to Lagos, the second daughter reported the abuse to her school after her elder sister had fled home, unable to endure the assaults any longer.”
The judge acknowledged that the school authorities had promptly alerted the Lagos State Ministry of Education and social workers, leading to the arrest of the perpetrator and the placement of the survivors in an orphanage.
“The defendant confessed to his actions and expressed remorse, as indicated in his statement, which was admitted as Exhibit A. His conduct as a father is utterly disgraceful,” Judge Soladoye remarked.
“The defendant is hereby found guilty on both charges and is sentenced to life imprisonment for each,” she declared.
Additionally, the judge ordered that the convict’s name be registered in the Sexual Offences Register of Lagos State.
Judge Soladoye commended the survivors and their school authorities for their courage in reporting the abuse to the appropriate authorities.
During the trial, Lagos State counsel, Mrs. Olufunke Adegoke, presented five witnesses, while the convict testified as the sole witness. Adegoke asserted that the convict had committed these heinous offenses between 2008 and 2017 at No. 2, Agbeke Street, near Iyana-Era Bus-stop, Ijanikin, Lagos State.
