On Friday, the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal confirmed the Lagos State High Court’s decision to sentence Nollywood actor Olanrewaju James, known as Baba Ijesha, to five years in prison for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl.
Justice Folashade Ojo, delivering the lead judgment, upheld Baba Ijesha’s conviction on counts 4 and 5, which involved indecently touching and sexually assaulting a minor. Justices Abdullahi Bayero and Paul Bassi concurred with the lead judgment.
Baba Ijesha was initially arraigned by the Lagos State Government on a six-count charge, including indecent treatment of a child, sexual assault, attempted sexual assault by penetration, and sexual assault by penetration.
Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo (retired) of the Ikeja Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences Court sentenced Baba Ijesha on July 14, 2022, to five years imprisonment for sexual assault. The trial court found him guilty of indecent treatment of a child and sexual assault between 2013 and 2014, under Section 135 of Lagos State Criminal Law 2015. However, he was acquitted of sexual assault by penetration and attempted sexual assault by penetration.
Dissatisfied with the verdict, Baba Ijesha, through his lawyer Kayode Olabiran, appealed the conviction, arguing that he was set up and merely acting in a script.
In the appeal ruling, Justice Ojo dismissed the appellant’s claim of acting in a script, emphasizing that the interaction on April 19, 2021, was a genuine personal encounter, not a performance. The court also highlighted that Baba Ijesha had confessed to indecently touching the minor and did not challenge the prosecution’s evidence.
Justice Ojo noted that Baba Ijesha made incriminating statements at Sabo Police Station and the State Criminal Investigation Department, which were used as evidence. These statements confirmed that he had molested the minor.
The court found that the victim’s testimony was credible and supported by substantial evidence. Justice Ojo affirmed that the evidence presented was sufficient to uphold Baba Ijesha’s conviction for indecent treatment of a child and sexual assault.
In conclusion, the appellate court upheld the five-year sentence for the indecent treatment of a child and a three-year sentence for sexual assault, to be served concurrently.
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