Lagos High Court sentences ex-teacher to life for assaulting eight-year-old pupil

The Lagos State High Court in Ikeja, presided over by Justice Rahman Oshodi, has handed a life sentence to Nwatu Isaac, a former teacher, after finding him guilty of sexually assaulting an eight-year-old girl at El-Bossaa Nursery and Primary School in Epe. The judge found him guilty of having sexual intercourse with the child in the school's male toilet on March 10, 2022. During the trial, prosecutors said Isaac had previously taught the girl and later transported pupils from the school on his motorcycle. They alleged that he asked her to retrieve a piece of paper from the toilet, then pushed her inside, locked the door and sexually assaulted her. The court heard that the child later told her father what had happened when she returned home. Her mother, who examined her that evening, testified that she noticed blood on the girl's pants and vagina, and that the child's school uniform was dirty. A later medical examination at the Mirabel Centre found an easily dilatable introitus, an absent hymen and marked laxity of the anal sphincter. Dr Olatunji Olubukola Elizabeth, the examining doctor, also testified that the vaginal examination indicated penile penetration. Although the examination took place more than two months after the alleged incident, the court held that the medical evidence supported the child's account of penetration. The judge also found that the defendant's own testimony placed him at the school at the relevant time. Mr Isaac denied entering the school and said he stayed at the gate to collect pupils. Justice Oshodi held that this did not amount to an alibi because he admitted being at the school when the alleged offence occurred. The court rejected defence evidence about the toilet's size and layout, the claimed recantation by the child, and the suggestion that another person could have abused her. Justice Oshodi found the child's testimony clear, detailed and consistent. He held that her evidence was sufficiently corroborated by other material evidence, including her mother's testimony, the medical findings, her immediate complaint and evidence placing the defendant at the school. The court therefore concluded that the prosecution had proved all elements of the offence beyond reasonable doubt. Mr Isaac was convicted under Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015. At sentencing, the convict asked for leniency. Justice Oshodi noted the seriousness of the offence and the trust the child had placed in Isaac as her former teacher. The judge said Isaac betrayed that trust by using his relationship with the child to lure her into the toilet. The court also observed that the offence happened on school premises, where parents expect their children to be safe. Justice Oshodi sentenced Isaac to life imprisonment and ordered that his name be entered in the Sex Offenders Register under the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency Law. The court also directed the prosecution to take immediate steps under the Victim Assistance and Witness Protection Law, 2022, after the victim's mother complained that she and the child had allegedly continued to face intimidation from school staff. The judge expressly stated that he was making no finding on that complaint.