The High Court 1 sitting in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital, has sentenced one Ahmadu Yaro to 21 years in prison for raping a three-month-old baby in the Adogi community of Lafia Local Government Area of the state.
Our correspondent learnt on Tuesday that Yaro had been arrested in May 2020 for alleged sexual assault and injuring the baby by the Nasarawa State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.
The case, which was between the Nasarawa State Government and Yaro, had its file number as NSD/LF191c/2020.
Delivering the judgement on Monday, in Lafia, the judge, Justice Aisha Mohammed Bashir, who is also the Chief Judge of the state, described the act as “barbaric and a direct attack on the moral conscience of society.”
She, therefore, sentenced him to 21 years in prison to serve as a deterrent to others who may currently be carrying out such an act in the state.
Speaking to PUNCH Metro on the development on Tuesday, the Senior Special Assistant to the Chief Judge on Protocol and Media, Enoch Ali Maku, told our correspondent that the convict had been standing trial for the past five years.
He noted that the Chief Judge was able to confirm that Yaro, indeed, raped the three-month-old baby, which prompted her to sentence him to 21 years in prison.
The SSA, however, said Yaro could appeal the case within 30 days if he is not satisfied with the judgement.
He said, “The judgement was passed by the Chief Judge yesterday (Monday).
“He (Ahmadu Yaro) had been standing trial for the past five years, and it was confirmed by the Chief Judge herself that he raped the baby.
“The only remedy was for him to be sentenced to prison, and he was given 21 years in prison.”
He added, “He can appeal within 30 days if he is not satisfied with the judgement. But of course, it is a capital offence and such cases can hardly go on appeal because it was proved beyond a reasonable doubt. But he can appeal if he so wishes.”
Advertisement