An Akure High Court has sentenced a commercial motorcycle rider, popularly known as an Okada rider, Mr. Dare Ojo, to death for the rape and murder of an 11-year-old passenger, Zainab Adeyemo, along the Ese/Irun-Akoko Road in Akoko North-west Local Government Area of Ondo State.
Ojo allegedly committed the offences on July 17, 2020, while conveying the deceased to the market at Irun-Akoko. Zainab’s mother had called Ojo, her regular commercial motorcycle rider, to take her daughter from Ese-Akoko to the market.
When the parents did not see Zainab at the market, they contacted her mother’s colleagues but were told she had not arrived. They then reached out to Ojo, who insisted that he had dropped her off at the market.
A search party was set up in the community and eventually discovered Zainab’s body, naked, in a bush.
In delivering the verdict, Justice Yemi Fasanmi stated that the accused was guilty based on findings from a pathologist at the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, who confirmed signs of struggle and forceful penetration. Additionally, the police investigator testified that Ojo led him and other officers to the scene.
Justice Fasanmi noted that, although there were no eyewitnesses, he applied the Doctrine of Last Seen, as Ojo was the last person known to have seen Zainab alive.
Ojo’s attorney, Kolawole Olusegun Oluiwa, pleaded for leniency, and the defendant himself begged for mercy. However, the court sentenced him to life imprisonment for rape, in accordance with Section 31(1), (2), and (3) of the Ondo State Child’s Rights Law, 2007, and to death by hanging for murder, under Section 319(1) of the Criminal Code Cap 37, Vol. 1, Laws of Ondo, 2006.
Speaking after the judgment, the counsel to the accused commended the diligence of the court.
The prosecution attorney, Afolabi Victory Bolanle, a Director in the State Ministry of Justice and Administrative Secretary of the Ondo State Agency Against Gender-Based Violence (OSA-GBV), told journalists that justice was served for all parties.
She stated: “This was a case of rape and murder. The accused was charged under Section 31 of the Child’s Rights Law, 2007, for sexual intercourse with a child, and Section 316/319 of the Criminal Code, 2006, for murder. The case, initially filed in 2020, underwent amendments and was eventually opened in 2023. The prosecution presented six witnesses, while the defendant did not call any. Ultimately, he was found guilty of both counts, rape and murder and sentenced accordingly.”
She further added: “We thank God. Today, judgment has been served for the deceased, her family, and the state. Even though the victim has passed, her family has received justice. I must commend the prosecutor, Barrister John Dada Joshua, and the legal team at OSA-GBV for their dedication in prosecuting this case from start to finish.” Telegraph
