Motorcyclist lures, rapes pupil in hotel

A primary six pupil, Princess, has been allegedly raped
by a commercial motorcyclist (okada rider) in a hotel on
Yemi Aderemi Street, Igbede, in the Ajangbadi area of
Lagos.
The name of the hotel was given as Julia Guest House. 112world learnt that the 40-year-old okada rider,
Uche Imo, was arrested by the police from the Isokoko
division, while the manager of the hotel, who was
accused of aiding the act, was invited for interrogation.
It was gathered that Imo and the pupil were neighbours
on Tijani Street, Ajangbadi, and he was employed by
Princess’ mother to take her and her sister to school.
Imo, a father of five, was said to have lured the 13-year-
old girl with cake into the hotel. He had reportedly raped
her in the facility four different times.
Our correspondent learnt that in one of the instances,
Princess declined going inside the hotel room with the
suspect, but the manager, William, reportedly persuaded
her.
The mother of the pupil said she knew about the ‘sexual
relationship’ between her daughter and Imo on February
14, 2016, after he brought Princess and her sister back
from an outing on that day.
She said, “Baba Joy (Imo) was my neighbour and was the
one taking my children to school. I paid him N200 every
day. On February 14, he came to me and said he wanted
to take them out and I allowed him. He bought meat pie
and ice cream for them. When they came back, Helen said
I should ask her sister what happened between her and
Baba Joy.
“I asked her, but she denied that anything happened
between them. It was when I started beating her that she
confessed that Baba Joy had sex with her, adding that it
had been happening for long.”
Princess told the police that the Abia State-born suspect
had been raping her since December 2015, adding that he
usually gave her cake.
She said, “I am in primary six and live on the same street
with Baba Joy. In December 2015, he took me to the
hotel and had sex with me. I did not want to enter, but the
hotel manager said I should. He had taken me there four
times and he usually bought cake for me.”
Our correspondent learnt that Princess was taken to the
Mirabel Centre, a human rights organisation, at the
Lagos State University Teaching Hospital and the case
was subsequently reported to the police.
The suspect, in his statement to the police, confessed to
the crime, saying the hotel manager was aware of it.
“I am married with five children. My first child is in
Senior Secondary School two. I lived at the back of
Princess’ house before I parked out in January. I told her I
liked her. Whenever she had a chance, she would call me
from a business centre and I would pick her up where she
was, take her to the hotel and have sex with her.
“There was a day I took her to the hotel and she did not
want to enter. The manager pleaded with her on my
behalf. I paid N500 for an hour,” he said.
The 55-year-old manager, who admitted that Imo was his
customer, said he had warned him to stop bringing the
minor to the hotel.
A police prosecutor, Sergeant Francisca Okere, brought
Imo before an Apapa Magistrate’s Court on two counts
bordering on rape.
The charges read in part, “That you, Uche Imo, on
January 25, 2016, at about 5pm on Yemi Aderemi Street,
Igbede, in the Ajangbadi, Lagos State, in the Apapa
Magisterial District, did defile a 13-year-old girl, thereby
committing an offence punishable under Section 317 of
the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.”
The defendant pleaded not guilty before the presiding
magistrate, Mrs. A.O. Adegbite, and was granted bail in
the sum of N200,000 with two sureties in like sum.
The case was adjourned till April 21, 2016.