Court Jails UNILAG Alumnus 50 Years For Raping Teenager
A Lagos State Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court sitting in the Ikeja area has sentenced an alumnus of the University of Lagos, John Otema, to 50 years imprisonment for raping a 19-year-old student of the institution on campus.
Thirty-four-year-old Otema, a Quantity Surveyor and Facilities Manager, was charged before Justice Abiola Soladoye on three counts of rape and assault occasioning harm on two female students.
He was found guilty on two of the three counts of rape and assault occasioning harm in respect of the rape of the 19-year-old student (identified as student X) and was found not guilty on a charge of raping another 20-year-old student (identified as Student Y) of the institution.
In convicting Otema of rape and assault occasioning harm of student X, Justice Soladoye noted that in addition to medical evidence and photographs tendered by the prosecution, student X had also identified the defendant as her assailant who bit her back and punched her eyes.
After convicting him, Justice Soladoye sentenced Otema to 50 years in prison for the rape and three-years for the assault with both sentences to run concurrently.
In absolving Otema of raping student Y, Justice Soladoye noted that the demeanour of student Y in her testimony was mischievous and she would not have claimed that she was raped if Otema had paid her the N50,000 agreed upon before their rendezvous.
The judge quoted a portion of student Y’s testimony which stated, “with intention to scare him off, I asked him for N100,000 but he said he will give me N50,000.
“I gave him my account number, but he did not credit my account. Friendship with benefits was the crux of our relationship.”
The judge described student Y as a game player who had embarked on a sexual frolic.
“The defendant, John Osagie Otema in respect of count-one (rape) is found not guilty as there is overwhelming evidence before the court that sexual intercourse between the defendant and PW2 (Student Y) was consensual as it was friendship with benefits,” Justice Soladoye held.
