Femi Olaleye, a Lagos-based doctor convicted of rape and sexual assault has been discharged and acquitted by the appeal court.
Olaleye was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by the high court on a two-count charge of defilement and sexual assault by penetration of his wife’s 16-year-old niece.
Impact News recalls that in October 2023, Justice Rahman Oshodi of the Lagos State Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court had sentenced Dr Olaleye to life imprisonment for defiling his wife’s 16-year-old niece.
After his conviction in August 2023, his lawyer, Kemi Pihinero, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), filed an appeal in November 2023, arguing that there was no direct evidence to confirm the alleged victim’s age.
Delivering judgement, the appellate court on Friday held that the lower court erred in its judgment based on the tainted and unreliable evidence of Oluremi, the defendant’s wife, and the alleged survivor.
The appeal court thereafter discharged and acquitted Olaleye.
In the lead judgment read by Jimi Olukayode Bada and adopted by the two other justices, Mohammad Sirajo, and Folasade Ojo, the appeal court stated that Oluremi’s conduct showed that she was motivated by greed and the desire to take over the appellant’s assets upon his incarceration.
The court also ruled that the lower court relied on the “hearsay evidence” of the other witnesses on the age of the alleged survivor.
The appellate court held that since none of the witnesses witnessed the birth of the alleged survivor, it was wrong for the lower court to rely on their testimonies.
The court ruled that the prosecution’s case that the alleged survivor was a 16-year-old child was bereft of evidence.
The court described the testimonies of the child forensic specialist, a medical doctor from the Mirabel Centre, and the investigating officer, as “worthless”.
The appellate court said the trial judge “interfered” in the proceedings by bridging the “yawning gaps” in the prosecution’s case.
The court held that the prosecution failed to present material witnesses, such as two family members who witnessed Olaleye’s alleged confession.
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