Justice Rahman Oshodi of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced former teacher Nwatu Isaac to life imprisonment following his conviction for the defilement of an eight-year-old pupil.
The offence occurred at El-Bossaa Nursery and Primary School in Epe on March 10, 2022.
Isaac was prosecuted under Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
That provision criminalises unlawful sexual intercourse with a child and prescribes life imprisonment upon conviction.
In delivering judgment, Justice Oshodi held that the prosecution had established the essential elements of the offence beyond reasonable doubt.
The court found that the complainant was a child and that the prosecution evidence established the sexual offence alleged against the defendant.
The court further ordered that Isaac’s details be placed on the Sex Offenders Register pursuant to applicable Lagos State legislation.
Registration performs an additional protective function beyond imprisonment by formally documenting persons convicted of sexual offences.
The case also drew attention to victim protection after concerns were reportedly raised by the child’s mother.
The court directed that appropriate victim and witness protection mechanisms should be engaged.
The judgment comes amid continuing concern over sexual violence against children and the responsibility of educational institutions to maintain environments in which pupils are protected from abuse.
It also demonstrates the difference between remand proceedings, where allegations remain unproved, and a completed criminal trial in which the prosecution has satisfied the burden required for conviction.
For schools, parents and child-protection authorities, the case reinforces the need for safeguarding procedures, rapid reporting and careful preservation of evidence whenever abuse is suspected.Related Story: Man Remanded Over Alleged Defilement of 8-Year-Old
News Source: Punch Newspapers
