A 63-year-old cleric, Chris Douglas, has been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by the Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja for raping a church member’s daughter.
Delivering judgment on Thursday, Justice Rahman Oshodi held that Douglas, the General Overseer of Peculiar Generation Assembly Church, Oshodi, abused his position of authority and trust to exploit the victim.
Describing the conduct as a gross breach of trust, the judge said, “The convict occupied a position of spiritual authority and was regarded as a father figure by the victim and her family.”
He added that instead of protecting that trust, the convict “betrayed it in the most reprehensible manner.”
The court held that the abuse occurred in a hotel on several occasions, noting that the victim and her family relied on the cleric for spiritual guidance. Justice Oshodi further stated that the prosecution proved that the victim suffered severe psychological trauma as a result of the abuse.
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“The court accepts the evidence that the victim suffered depression and recurring suicidal thoughts as a direct consequence of the cpnvict’s actions,” he said.
During the trial, the prosecution, led by the Director of Public Prosecution, Dr Babajide Martins, called five witnesses, including the victim, her mother, and a medical doctor.
Medical and documentary exhibits were also tendered in evidence.The victim told the court that the cleric initially drugged and raped her in September 2017.
“I trusted him like a spiritual father. I never imagined he could do this to me,” she testified.
Her mother also told the court that she confronted the convict after discovering the incident. “When I went to his church, he cried and said it was the work of the devil. He begged us in front of the elders,” she said.
The complainant said the matter was later reported to a human rights organisation, the police at Makinde Division, and the Mirabel Centre for a medical examination.
The convict, however, denied the allegations and told the court that the relationship was consensual.
But Justice Oshodi rejected the claim, holding that the evidence before the court established rape beyond a reasonable doubt.
“The defence of consent is not supported by the totality of the evidence before the court,” the judge ruled. The court reviewed both oral and documentary evidence and considered objections raised by the defence under the Evidence Act, 2011.
While some documents were discounted for non-compliance, the court held that the oral testimony of the medical expert, Dr Maria Fadaka, remained admissible.
In his judgment, the court noted that although some alleged incidents were not sufficiently proved to have occurred before January 2018, the prosecution successfully established rape in relation to incidents when the victim was already 18 years old.
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The court consequently discharged the convict on six counts of defilement and sexual assault but found him guilty on three counts of rape.
Justice Oshodi sentenced Douglas to life imprisonment on each count, holding that the sentences shall run concurrently.
“The law must protect the vulnerable, and this court will not hesitate to punish abuse of trust in the strongest terms,” the judge said.
The court also ordered that the convict’s name be entered into the Lagos State Sexual Offenders Register.