David Jackson, a 72-year-old man, received a life imprisonment sentence on Monday from Justice Abiola Soladoye of the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court in Ikeja, Lagos State.
The judge found Jackson, a security guard, guilty of defiling his neighbor’s young daughter, aged seven at the time of the incident and eight when she testified in court.
The prosecution presented conclusive evidence, proving three essential elements of defilement beyond reasonable doubt. Justice Soladoye delivered the judgment, noting the victim’s age and her identification of Jackson as a security guard on her street.
She held, “A brother of the survivor sent her on an errand on this day and when she passed and greeted the convict, Jackson, he dragged her inside the room and she shouted but he used his handkerchief to cover her mouth.
“The testimony of the survivor was clear, consistent and coherent under cross-examination.
“The second prosecution witness was a teacher who identified the survivor as her student and she testified that one of her classmates had reported to her that the survivor was not feeling well and that she was walking in a funnily way.
“The teacher, in her evidence, stated that she made an inquiry and discovered that the survivor was complaining of pains on her private parts and that someone had sexually assaulted her.”
Justice Soladoye stated that the teacher attempted to notify the survivor’s parents, but they failed to respond, leading the teacher to report the incident.
This resulted in the survivor being referred to the Mirabel Medical Centre in Ikeja, and the subsequent medical report was forwarded to the police.
The judge found the survivor’s father’s testimony to be credible and consistent with the evidence presented by the other two prosecution witnesses.
She also rejected the convict’s attempts to deny the charges, finding them unconvincing.
The justice highlighted, ”The father of the survivor who testified identified Jackson as a security guard around his neighbourhood and that he was with his wife, who was ill in the hospital when the incident happened.
“The testimonies of the prosecution witnesses were credible, convincing, compelling and the prosecution proved the case of defilement against Jackson.
“First, the survivor was a child as she came to the court to testify. Secondly, Jackson had sexual intercourse with her and there was no consent as the survivor is a minor.”
“Jackson is consequently found guilty as charged for the defilement of a seven-year-old child contrary to Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State 2015 and he is hereby sentenced to life imprisonment,” the judge held.
Justice Soladoye additionally mandated that the convict’s name be enrolled in the Sexual Offences Register, a database maintained by the Lagos State Government. During the trial, the prosecution, led by Ms. Abimbola Abolade, presented three witnesses, while the convict was the sole witness in their own defense.
Abolade alleged that the convict committed the offense on May 16, 2022, at a residence located on Oyedele Close, Ojodu, in the Berger area of Lagos State.
