The Children, Sexual and Gender-based Violence Court in Awka, Anambra State, sentenced forty-year-old Kenneth Nwangu to ten years in prison on Monday for defiling his only child, a nine-year-old daughter. After strong evidence established the defendant’s culpability as charged, the state government filed three counts against him, and the judgement was rendered in all three counts. As a result, he was found guilty on count one of the charges, which was having sex with a nine-year-old, an offence covered by Section 34 of the Child Rights Law of Anambra State, Nigeria, 2004. For this offence, he was sentenced to seven years in jail.
In addition, the court sentenced the defendant to one year in prison for inflicting mental and psychological abuse on the victim and two years in prison for inflicting physical injuries on the victim. Sections 4 and 16 of the 2017 Anambra State, Nigeria, Violence Against Persons, Prohibition and Protection Laws punish the two acts. In reaching its decision, the court considered testimony from prosecution witnesses, including the victim, and also considered evidence suggesting that the defendant had been caring for the victim for approximately a year following the child’s mother’s departure.
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The defendant was given a chance by the court to clarify why he was raping his child and why he shouldn’t receive the maximum punishment of life in prison. In response, the defendant first denied defiling his child, saying that the accusation that led to his arrest by the police was really made against a lady he typically left the child with after his wife filed for divorce. But he eventually confessed to the crime and asked for forgiveness, and his defence attorney also asked the court to show pity, citing the defendant’s first-time status as an offender and the fact that the victim was his only child, among other reasons.
The victim is still under the care of the Anambra State Government, per the court’s decision, and the prison terms of seven, two, and one year are to be served concurrently. Prof. Sylvia Ifemeje, the Anambra State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, who oversaw the prosecution team in the case, responded to the ruling by calling it a positive step that will discourage future perpetrators. Ifemeje emphasised that there is no negotiating the state government’s zero tolerance policy for sexual assaults.
