The Ikeja Special Offences Court has sentenced a 31-year-old teacher, Idowu Daniel, to seven years’ imprisonment for sexually assaulting his 16-year-old student within school premises. The convict was charged with defilement.

Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo held that the prosecution failed to establish the charge of defilement against the defendant, as the survivor could not show up in court to testify.

“However, the confessional statement by the defendant, which was made voluntarily, showed that he sexually assaulted the minor.

“The defendant admitted to have fondled the breast of the victim twice and tried to have sex with her, but he could not penetrate as she was a virgin.

“The defendant is hereby convicted on the charge of sexual assault of a child,” she said.

The convict pleaded for mercy when asked if he had anything to say.

“My lord, I am very sorry for what happened. I promise it will not happen again,” the convict told the court.

The judge also lashed out at the convict for touching the survivor in a suggestive way, adding that he would have gotten life imprisonment if the minor had testified in court.

“You are a teacher, and you were touching the breast of your student. You would have gone for life if the victim had come to court to testify,” she said.

The judge, who had earlier sentenced the convict to five years imprisonment, increased his jail term to seven years without an option of a fine after saying that he had been in custody for three years.

(NAN)