An Investigating Police Officer (IPO), Inspector Elizabeth Osikolu, on Monday, November 4, 2024, told the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court sitting in the Ikeja area of Lagos State how a housewife, Omolara Alashe, allegedly forced a 19-year-old girl to sleep with her husband, Ramoni Lateef, to bear a child.

Omolara and her husband are facing a three-count charge of conspiracy, rape, and sexual assault.

The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The witness, while being led in evidence by the State Lead Counsel, Babajide Boye, told the court that the incident occurred in Lagos in 2022.

Osikolu told the court that the mother of the victim died while they were living in the Ojota area of Lagos and the couple offered to accommodate her.

The police officer told the court that the victim said the couple allegedly abused her physically whenever she made mistakes while living with them.

According to the witness, the first defendant (Omolara) on a particular day, allegedly woke up the 19-year-old in the middle of the night and stripped her naked while the second defendant (Ramoni) slept with her.

The IPO told the court that an investigation further revealed that the couple had a baby but died in October 2022.

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Osikolu said: “The first defendant has not been able to conceive again after the death of the child.

“So they decided to use the survivor to bear children for him to prevent the husband from getting married again.

“The girl said they were in the sitting room one day when the first defendant started beating her, stripped her naked, and inserted her fingers in her vagina.

“After she beat the girl, she threw out her belongings, seized her ATM card, MTN line, and the salary she was making at the time to deny her access to her money.”

While being cross-examined by the defence counsel, Lekan Egberongbe, the police officer maintained that the girl was not lying.

Osikolu said Omolara admitted it in her statement.

She told the court that if the 19-year-old girl had consented to the sexual assault, she would not have reported it to the Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency (DSVA).

The IPO added: “She would not have submitted herself for medical examination at Mirabel centre.

“The girl in question could not resist the man because she was intimidated by the wife.”

The presiding judge, Justice Rahman Oshodi, adjourned the case to February 3, 2025, for the continuation of trial.

The Star