A 10-year-old primary four pupil has told the police how her teacher, Adeniran Adebayo, allegedly took advantage of her and defiled her inside the school toilet.
The victim said her health teacher threatened to flog her if she made a noise while he had sex with her in the toilet.
She said one of the female teachers in the school, however, heard her cry and barged into the toilet, forcing Adebayo, a father of two, to stop and hurriedly dress up.
The incident happened at a private school on Olateju Ilesanmi Street, Baruwa, Ipaja area of Lagos.
Narrating the incident to a Lagos State Chief Magistrate’s Court at Ebute Meta on Wednesday, the Investigating Police Officer from the State Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba, said the victim repeated the account three different times.
He said, “I interviewed the victim after the matter was brought to the SCID. She said on the fateful day, she was in school after the closing hours and was waiting for her younger brother, who attended the same school, so they could go back home together.
“While waiting, she decided to get busy with her assignments. She said it was while she was doing the assignment that the teacher came and said she should follow him.
“He then took her to a toilet within the school premises and threatened to cane her if she screamed, unzipped himself, undressed the pupil and made love to her.
“The girl said she was crying while this was on. It was a female teacher, who was passing by that heard her cry. The female teacher came closer to have a better look and immediately the suspect saw her, he quickly zipped up. The pupil said the female teacher told him that being a teacher, he should never have taken advantage of the girl.”
The police officer said after the victim repeatedly affirmed the account, he decided to call the supposed witness.
“When I called her and interviewed her, she said she didn’t see anything. I called the girl again, and she narrated the same story to me,” he added.
The Chief Magistrate, O.O. Olatunji asked the defendant if the story was true.
Adebayo said, “I am the health teacher of the school. I married five years ago, and have two sons. There are six male teachers in the school. On that day, I didn’t call the girl. I only stood at the gate and asked her and her brother to go home. That was all.
“I was surprised that after four days, they came to my office and arrested me. The toilet in question has never even been used by anybody.”
The chief magistrate in his reaction said the account of the suspect was not credible.
“Kids hardly lie, especially when they are between the ages of six to 11. And that’s why I find it hard to believe the account of the defendant. People like you should not be in the society. If like you said there were six male teachers in your school, why did she decide to pick only you? It’s such a big shame,” he said.
Present in the court were the victim and her father. The school management was not represented.
Earlier, the police prosecutor, Etim Nkankuk, had asked the court to remand the suspect in prison pending the release of legal advice from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.
Nkankuk had said the crime was regrettable because it happened within the school premises “where the character of the victim was supposed to be developed and built.”
He said the victim sustained injuries in the course of the act.
The defence counsel, Olaitan Olabode, had insisted that the alleged offence was bailable.
Olatunji, in his rulling said, “The defendant is granted bail in the sum of N300,000 with two sureties in like sum. The sureties should also deposit the sum of N50,000 into the account of the Chief Registrar.
“One of the sureties must be a blood relation of the defendant. The case file should hastily be duplicated for legal advice from the DPP.
“Meanwhile, the defendant is ordered to be remanded in prison, pending the perfection of his bail terms.”
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