A 32-year-old street sweeper, Damilola Omojolowo, is to spend the rest of his life in prison custody for raping a 14-year-old girl.
Justice Abiola Sholadoye of the Special Offences and Domestic Violence Court in Ikeja, Lagos, gave the judgement.
The culprit was convicted on one count of defilement of the teenager, whom he claimed was his girlfriend.
According to the prosecution, the convict defiled the victim by having non-consensual sexual intercourse with her.
The prosecution said the offence committed contravened Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State.
The convict was arraigned and he pleaded guilty to the charges preferred against him.
The prosecution counsel, A.R. Abolade, stated that the convict committed the offense between June 2022 and July 2022 at No. 3 Church Street, Ajegunle, Ikorodu Road, Lagos.
The prosecutor also said that the incident came to light on August 6, 2022, after the convict gave the victim a white tablet to ingest which made her start bleeding after which she was taken to the hospital.
The convict admitted to having carnal knowledge with the victim, stating that she was his girlfriend.
He however denied giving her any tablet to ingest.
Justice Soladoye, however, sentenced him after the prosecutor read the facts of the case.
“It is right that a minor cannot consent to any sexual activity. Even if she did, it is of no use.
“He denied giving any tablet to the victim to ingest. It is important to stress that the only charge in this case is that of defilement of the child; so, the issue of the swallowing of the tablet by the child is of no importance.
“Since the offense of defilement is a strict liability offense with a mandatory sentence, the defendant, Damilola Omojolowo, is hereby sentenced to life imprisonment for defilement, contrary to Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
“The defendant, Damilola Omojolowo, male, is to have his name registered in the sex offenders registry as maintained by Lagos State Government”, the judge held.