Two teachers bag jail term for sexual assault in Ekiti

An Ekiti High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti has sentenced two teachers, Gbenga Ajibola and Olaofe Ayodele, to 44 years imprisonment for rape, with no option of fine.  

The prosecution, led by Mr. Kunle-Shina Adeyemi, informed the court that the defendants were arraigned before Justice Adeniyi Familoni on March 2, 2022, on a three-count charge of rape and abuse of office.

According to the prosecution, the crime occurred in November 2019 in Ado-Ekiti, where the two teachers raped female students aged 17 and 15 (names withheld).

The judgment brings a sense of justice for the victims and highlights the need for stronger measures to protect students from abuse.

According to him, the offence contravened Section 31(2) of the Childs Right Law, Cap. C7, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.

In her testimony before the court, one of the victims said one of the convicts, Ajibola was her Computer teacher, and always disturbed her while in class.

“On this fateful day, he told me to be in mufti and gave me N200 to go and wait for him in front of a filling station along Bank Road.

“He later came there alongside Mr Olaofe, but before they came, one of my classmates also met me there, he told me that Mr Olaofe asked her to wait here for him.

“When they came, we all left for a hotel, around Oke-Ila area of Ado Ekiti. On getting there, we were taken to different rooms where Mr Ajibola had sexual intercourse with me.

“After that day, he continued to disturb me, when I could no more bear it, I narrated what happened to my mother who later took the matter up,” she narrated.

To prove his case, the prosecutor called four witnesses and tendered statements of the victims and defendants, medical reports, as well as report of the Panel of enquiry among others as exhibits.

Also, Counsel to the defendants, Mr Lawrence Fasanmi called six witnesses to prove his case.

In his judgement, Justice Familoni said, the defendants shared their minds and mulled the voice of conscience as they took advantage of the victims with reckless abandonment.

“They deserved severe panel sanction for their misdeeds to serve as a warning and deterrent to others who may want to follow their footsteps,”.

Justice Familoni therefore sentenced the defendants, Ajibola Gbenga and Olaofe Ayodele to 20 years imprisonment each without an option of fine on count one and two years each on count two without option of fine, making 44 years imprisonment.