I allowed her go when I discovered she was a virgin- Driver tells court

 A driver, Emmanuel Okorie who allegedely defiled his neighbour’s 15-year-old sister, has denied the allegation, leveled against him by Lagos State Government.
The defendant who is standing trial on a one count charge before a Lagos High Court sitting in Igbosere, Wednesday, told the court that he did not defile the victim.

Okorie who was testifying before Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye on trial within trial, said, "I let her go, when I discovered that she was a virgin, I put my hand in her vagina and when I noticed that she was a virgin , I let her go, I didn’t sleep with her, because i didn’t want to injure her.”

He said that the incident occurred at his elder sister’s house in Ejigbo area of Lagos.

The defendant who was led in trial within trial by his counsel Mr Worer Obuagbaka, also said that he didn’t make any confessional statement, nor told his investigative police officer that he had sex with the victim.

"This statement you are seeing was not written by me, I was not given any paper to write, l was inside the cell, when a man nicked named Sean Paul, came and brought me out to where the IPO was, the next thing he did was to slap me and then I saw Inspector Amina Adeoye with an envelope and I was asked to sign, he said."

Okorie said, "When I asked to read the statement, Sean Paul blew me on my forehead and I started bleeding, I did not read the statement I signed under duress.”

Earlier the Lagos State Prosecutor Mr Akin George, had called the third prosecution witness, Inspector Amina Adeoye who narrated how she recorded the defendant’s statement.

She said, "On December 1, 2015, a case of defilement was transferred from Ejigbo Police Station to State Criminal Investigation Department SCID,Panti Yaba, and the victim that was defiled was 15-year-old then.”

"After the case was transferred, I took the statement of the victim, thereafter I cautioned the defendant in English Language, then I recorded his statement, after the defendant’s statement had been taken, we had to refer the victim to Mirabel Center at Lagos University Teaching Hospital LASUTH, she was treated and the report was sent to our office, Adoye added.”

She also told the Court that she read the statement Okorie made at Ejigbo, where he denied committing the offence, adding that she did not force him, to sign the statement.

"He wrote the statement that the girl and her friend were actually coming back from school, when the incident occurred, the witness stated.”

The defendant was first arraigned on a count charge of defilement on December 14, 2015, at Yaba Magistrate’s Court.

He was alleged to have committed the offence on November 26, 2015, he was also arraingned before the High Court in April, 2017.

According to the prosecutor the offence committed is Punishable under section 137, of the Criminal law of Lagos State 2015.

Okorie who said he is from Delta State and resides at 6, Alahaji Isiaka, Ilasamaja area of Lagos had pleaded not guilty to the charge.

At the commencent of trial the victim, a Senior Secondary School Student, had told the Court that she and her friend, were coming back from School, around 4pm, when they greeted the defendant, and her friend stopped at her mother’s shop.

She said that the defendant called her, because her aunt sells provision, and said he bought a drink from her aunt that she should help him return the bottle, but he didn’t give her the bottle.

The Victim who was led in evidence in Chief by the Lagos State Prosecutor Mr Akin George, said that the defendant who lives downstairs, in the same house with her, dragged her into his room and asked if she was a virgin.

She said, "He dragged me into his room and asked me if I was a virgin, I told him I am, after a while I saw my skirt down and wet, I saw myself on the bed after he was through with what he did, he opened the door I was crying and he started pleading with me."

On enquiry of what the defendant did, the victim said ” I noticed that someone was on me, he had sex with me and I was crying and pleading that he should leave me, but he was hardened and did not listen to me.”

She said the defendant ejaculated on her, and after he was done, she fell sick.

"When he was done, I fell sick, I was crying and went to my friend’s mother’s shop, she asked me what happened, meanwhile, the defendant was at my back begging me to stop crying, he dragged with my friend’s mother, my friend accompanied me home and when the defendant was asked what happened, he was about to run away when he was apprehended, she stated.”

The Victim further stated that after the incident, she did not take her pant from the defendant’s place as she only wore her skirt.

The case has been adjourned till July, 5, for continuation of trial.

Vanguard