An Assistant Superintendent of Police, Babatunde Ashifat, has narrated to the Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court how a man, Jelili Lawal, raped a septuagenarian to death.
The witness who was led in evidence in chief by the state counsel, Ms Bukola Okeowo, on Tuesday, told the court that he received the case for investigation on January 2, 2019.
Ashifat stated that the case was reported at their station by an officer who was on patrol.
The witness further told the court that the policemen who reported the case were called by two ladies who saw the defendant allegedly raping the victim.
According to him, the old woman was with the defendant on January 1, 2019, at the Maryland area of Lagos and begged him that he should please help her locate her way home.
He said: “The defendant gave her N500 and they boarded the same bus together.
“On getting to a bus stop, the defendant told her to come down at the Shoprite and took her to an uncompleted building in a bushy area, assaulted and raped her in the middle of the night.
“The victim was crying for help when two ladies heard her and caught the defendant in the act.
“They helped the woman by calling a patrol officer and the matter was reported at our station.”
Ashifat further narrated to the court that the alleged victim, who had a problem with her ears and was declared missing by her family, sustained injuries from the sexual assault.
He added that the alleged victim later died from the incident due to excessive bleeding.
“The victim was bleeding in her anus and vagina and I issued a medical form for her to be taken to Mirabel Medical Centre.
“The medical doctor who examined her confirmed that there was a forceful penetration on the vagina.
“I was later told that the victim died due to the bleeding she sustained as a result of the rape,” the witness said.
The policeman also said that after the report was made, he recorded the statements of the alleged victim and the defendant.
He said that he visited the scene of the crime, which was bushy and an abandoned place where no one was living.
Justice Rahman Oshodi adjourned the case until October 27, 2023, for continuation of trial.
Madukwe B. Nwabuisi is an accomplished journalist renown for his fearless reporting style and extensive expertise in the field. He is an investigative journalist, who has established himself as a kamikaze reporter.