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A sexual offences and Domestic Violence Court sitting in Ikeja Lagos has convicted and sentenced one 42-year-old electronic retailer, Stephen Okparea, to life imprisonment for raping his former neighbour ‘s daughter (f) , (names withheld).
Justice Rahman Oshodi delivered the judgment after finding him guilty of count three, which bordered on defilement.
Okparea was a former neighbour to the survivor in” a face me , I face you” apartment at Shongunle, Lagos.
His room was close to their compound’s bathroom. The survivor had told the court how the convict has been having unlawful sexual intercourse with her since she was 9-year- old till 14 when they relocated to another apartment. She said, it usually happens whenever the mother goes out for her business between 5 to 6am. By that time,she would still be sleeping and left alone in the house and the convict would come in and forcefully have sexual intercourse with her. And some other times, when she is going to take her bath in the evening, he would stop her, drag her inside the bathroom and rape her.
But Okparea had told the police during his arrest and cause of interrogation that he only had sexual intercourse with her twice when he visited their new apartment to collect the money her mother was owning him.
One of the counts read: Stephen Okparea a.k.a. Stephen okpara(m) sometime in March 2023 at Ago-owo street, shongunle, Lagos State in Ikeja Judicial Division did difile one (f) aged 14 years by having unlawful sexual intercourse with her.
This offence is contrary to Section 137 of the Criminal law cap C17 vol. 3 laws of Lagos State 2015.”
When Okparea was arraigned on April 15, 2025, he pleaded not guilty.
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