Man rapes 12-year-old woman-friend’s daughter in Ondo

An Akure Magistrate’s Court sitting in Akure, the Ondo state capital, has ordered the remand of a 35-year-old commercial motorcyclist, Ademola Adepetu, at the Olokuta Correctional Centre for allegedly raping his woman friend’s daughter.

Adepetu was arraigned before the court on a one-count charge of having unlawful sexual intercourse with the 12-year-old girl (name withheld).

Recounting her ordeal, the victim told the court that the accused locked her inside a room before defiling her, saying he raped her four times before he was apprehended.

She lamented that her father left home and abandoned her and two other siblings, while her mother traveled to Libya in search of greener pastures some two years ago.

She said, “Before traveling, my mother rented a one-room apartment for us and left us in the care of her younger sister, who later absconded and never returned.”

She explained that the accused took advantage of her following her parents’ negligence, saying he promised to foot her education, only to sexually assault her.

The accused, Adepetu, however, pleaded not guilty, but said the victim was not 12 years old but 15 years old when he had carnal knowledge of her, claiming the young girl was old enough to “know a man,” and said he married his first wife before the age of 12.

The prosecutor, Martins Olowofeso, earlier informed the court that the offense was committed in Ondo town, disclosing that the mother of the victim was a girlfriend to the defendant.

He said the mother traveled to Libya after renting a room for her three children, then aged 10, five, and three years.

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He said investigations revealed that the defendant’s first wife had also traveled to Libya, and after settling down, she asked her husband to look for someone interested in joining her there.

It was at that point that the victim’s mother, who was in a relationship with the defendant, volunteered to travel to Libya.

He said, “After the children’s mother left for Libya, the rent for the one-room apartment expired. The defendant then offered to accommodate the children, and it was during that period that he began to sexually abuse the girl.”

He prayed the court to remand the defendant at the Olokuta Correctional Centre pending advice from the Department of Public Prosecution (DPP).

The Magistrate, Grace Alphonso, in her ruling, ordered Adepetu to be remanded at Olokuta Prison pending the DPP’s advice.

She also directed that the three children, who were abandoned by their mother, be taken into protective custody at Dorian Home along Idanre Road, Akure, for protection and counseling.

The court also ordered that the mother, who is expected back in the country soon, should be denied access to the three children, while the case was adjourned to July 24, 2025, for further hearing.

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE