By Harrison Essien
Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo has sentenced a 28 year-old man, Shehu Dikko to seven years’ imprisonment for the rape of a 17-year-old girl at Eka Street, Uyo, the State Capital.
Dikko, a native of Sokoto State and a suya seller at IBB Junction, Uyo, was convicted today after the court found him guilty of rape.
The convict was charged under Sections 1(a) and (b) and 2 of Akwa Ibom State Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Law, Cap 162, Vol. 6, Laws of Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria, 2022.
FACTS OF THE CASE
According to evidence before the court, the incident occurred on 6th September, 2023, at about 8:30pm while the victim, (name withheld by me) was on an errand to deliver food to her sister at a hospital.
In her statement to the Police, the victim identified the defendant as a regular customer at her mother’s food business.
“I saw Shehu Dikko in front of his house. He held my hands. When I refused, he dragged me into his house and in the process, I hit my head on the wall and I became weak. He forcefully removed his penis and forcefully inserted it inside my vagina and had carnal knowledge of me till I started bleeding. I didn’t even had strength to shout when he was done. He carried me to the road and gave me N2,000. He put me inside keke to drop me in our house. But when the keke man saw how I was bleeding, he dropped me halfway. I was then rescued by a Good Samaritan who informed my mother.” The victim told the Police.
Her mother, a 53-year-old trader from Bauchi State, in her statement to the Police, explained that she had been solely responsible for raising her five children.
PROSECUTION’S CASE
The prosecution, led by counsel from Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Justice, called two witnesses: a medical doctor with 38 years’ experience who examined the victim, and the Investigating Police Officer (IPO).
Four exhibits were tendered and admitted in evidence, including the defendant’s confessional statement, Police Investigation Report and the medical report, “which revealed a broken hymen with bruises in the cervix of the victim”
COURT’S FINDINGS
In a judgment that lasted about one hour, the trial judge, Justice Nsemeke Daniel noted attempts by some persons to frustrate the prosecution of the case, including pressure allegedly mounted on the victim’s mother to withdraw the matter and the victim relocated from Akwa Ibom State, actions the court described as calculated to undermine justice.
“In this case, the victim is pressured to relocate to her State in the northern part of Nigeria after her kinsmen insisted that the case should be withdrawn. Even the victim’s mother came to the Court under compulsion to withdraw the case. There’s no doubt in my mind that the victim was chased out of Akwa Ibom State so that the charge will fail. So when the mother who reported the case to the Police came and said she is in Court to withdraw, I knew something was fishy somewhere and I rejected it as the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended does not support such an application.” Justice Daniel held.
SENTENCE
While noting that the law prescribes life imprisonment for rape, Justice Daniel said the court was exercising discretion to temper justice with mercy.
“To this end, instead of life imprisonment, I hereby sentence the defendant to seven years imprisonment without option of fine with effect from today, 9th February, 2026. The sentence must serve not only as punishment to the defendant but as a deterrent to others who may think they can violate the rights of women and girls with impunity” Justice Daniel held.
The conviction marks another enforcement of Akwa Ibom State Violence Against Persons Prohibition Law, aimed at protecting vulnerable persons and ensuring accountability for sexual offences.
