A former teacher and motorcycle operator at El-Bossaa Nursery and Primary School in Epe, Lagos State, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for defiling an 8-year-old pupil on the school premises. Nwatu Isaac was found guilty of defilement, an offence contrary to Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015. The incident occurred on 10 March 2022.
Justice Rahman Oshodi of the Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja sentenced Isaac to life imprisonment after finding him guilty. The judge held that the prosecution had proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Isaac lured the underage girl, whom he had previously taught, into the school’s male toilet, where he unlawfully had sexual intercourse with her.
The prosecution, led by Inumidun Solarin, called five witnesses, including the survivor, her mother, police investigators, and a medical doctor from the Mirabel Centre. The survivor, who was nine years old when she testified, told the court that Isaac, whom she knew as “Master Isaac”, sent her to the male toilet to fetch a piece of paper, where he sexually assaulted her.
The survivor testified that Isaac threatened to kill her if she disclosed the incident to anyone. She further told the court that she bled following the assault and that Isaac wiped the blood before sending her out of the toilet. Her mother subsequently discovered blood on the girl’s underwear and genital area when she returned home from school, prompting her to report the matter.
Medical evidence was also presented before the court. Dr Olubukola Olatunji, a medical doctor with the Mirabel Centre, testified about the findings from the child’s examination, which the prosecution said were consistent with penile penetration. The defence, led by Anthony Agadah, called eight witnesses and maintained that Isaac was not at the school on the day of the alleged offence.
However, Justice Oshodi rejected the defence’s account, finding inconsistencies in the evidence of its witnesses. The judge also noted that Isaac’s own evidence placed him at the school at the material time. Justice Oshodi found the child’s testimony credible and held that it was sufficiently corroborated by other evidence before the court.
In sentencing Isaac, the judge stressed the gravity of the offence and the abuse of trust involved, noting that the victim knew him as a teacher and trusted him. The court also ordered that Isaac’s name be entered into the Sex Offenders Register in accordance with the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Law, 2021.
Key points
- The convict was found guilty of defilement, an offence contrary to Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
- The judge ordered that Isaac's name be entered into the Sex Offenders Register.
- The incident occurred on 10 March 2022 at El-Bossaa Nursery and Primary School in Epe, Lagos State.
