A 55-year-old man, Yau Ibrahim of Kundu village, Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the unlawful carnal knowledge of a 6-year-old girl.
Ibrahim was jailed for life by a Senior Magistrates’ Court 3B in Unguwan-Daji, Minna, the state capital.
The convict was also found guilty of infecting the child with a sexually transmitted disease (STD).
The court heard from the police prosecutor, Inspector Aliyu Yakubu Kuta, that “on August 3, 2023, at approximately 3:30 pm, Abdullahi Dauda of the same village reported to the Kagara Police Division that Yau Ibrahim had lured his 6-year-old daughter, who was in primary 1, to his room and engaged in unlawful sexual intercourse with her.”
Yakubu revealed that the young girl suffered injuries to her private parts, leading to severe bleeding.
The court considered two witnesses and two exhibits, including the convict’s confessional statement and the victim’s medical report from the Police Clinic, Minna, before closing the case for ruling.
During the trial, Yau Ibrahim admitted his offence.
In her judgment delivered on January 9, 2024, Judge Hafsat Abdullahi Bawa Wuse acknowledged the plea for leniency but deemed the magnitude of the offence and the victim’s health condition as substantial factors.
The judge sentenced the convict to life imprisonment at the Minna old correctional centre under Section 26 (2) of the Niger State Child Rights Law 2021 as Amended.
In a separate development, the Kaduna State Police Command has arrested two suspects who allegedly stole a generator and solar battery in a mosque in Kaduna.
The command’s Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Mansir Hassan, disclosed this to newsmen in Kaduna on Saturday.
Hassan said on Thursday, based on credible information, detectives arrested the suspect and brought to the station of Sabon Garin area of Hunkuyi Local Government Area in the state.
Hassan said, “The suspect was arrested for suspicious movement around the mosque.”
According to him, during interrogation, he confessed to having stolen a generator and solar battery at Hunkuyi and Nahuce village in their mosque.
“The suspect further stated that he sold the stolen items to the second suspect.
“Some exhibits were recovered and investigation is ongoing and the suspects will be charged to court upon completion of investigation,” Hassan said.