The Abia State Government has secured the conviction of two child sexual offenders, who were sentenced to 30 years and 10 years in separate defilement cases. The government described the outcome as a major milestone in its fight against sexual and gender-based violence.
One of the convicts, a 35-year-old man from Akwa Ibom State, was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a Family Court sitting at the High Court in Umuahia for defiling a five-year-old girl. Another 32-year-old man was sentenced to 30 years’ imprisonment after being convicted of defiling a 13-year-old girl.
The Commissioner for Information, Okey Kanu, disclosed the development on Tuesday in Umuahia while briefing journalists on the outcome of this week’s State Executive Council meeting chaired by Governor Alex Otti.
Kanu said the convictions reflected the administration’s zero-tolerance stance on sexual offences and sent a strong warning to offenders.
He noted that the convictions were among the landmark achievements of the state’s Nchedo Sexual Assault Referral Centre at the General Hospital, Aba.
“The centre has continued to provide coordinated medical, psychosocial and referral services to survivors of sexual and gender-based violence,” he said.
He added, “The Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection has continued to implement the state’s social protection framework by identifying and supporting vulnerable residents that require urgent medical and humanitarian assistance.”
Speaking on the convictions, the Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection, Ngozi Felix, said one of the convicts fled to Nasarawa State after committing the offence but was later tracked down by the police and brought back to Abia for prosecution.
She described the prosecution as “one of the fastest recorded within Nigeria’s network of Sexual Assault Referral Centres,” attributing the outcome to the collaboration between the Ministries of Health, Justice, Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, as well as the Nigeria Police Force.
Felix also praised the Abia State Commissioner of Police, Danladi Isa, for the command’s support throughout the investigation and prosecution of sexual violence cases.
She added that the administration of Governor Alex Otti remained committed to protecting vulnerable residents and ensuring justice for survivors of sexual violence.