Justice
Oyejide Falola of the Osun State High Court sitting in Ikirun on Tuesday gave
the verdict today, putting an end to a three-year sexual case that has brought
national attention on the traditional king, the Alowa of Ilowa-Ijesa, Oba
Adebukola Alli, and his accuser, Helen Okpara.
Delivering
judgment, Falola said that the plaintiff, Miss Helen Okpara, failed to tender
enough exhibits to convince the court beyond reasonable doubt that she was
raped by the monarch.
The
judge also held that the plaintiff, who accused the #monarch of raping her at
his private residence in Osogbo, failed to prove that she was raped.
He
said a case of #rape could only be established with exhibits such as bed sheet,
the victim’s pant and a medical report indicating forceful penetration, adding
that the prosecutor failed to tender all these.Falola said Okpara also failed
to show the bruises on her private part as evidence that she was raped.
He further said the prosecutor failed to show
to the court the plaintiff’s torn clothes as she had claimed in her submissions
before the court.
While
stressing that a case of rape must be proved with injuries sustained on the
private part as well as other parts of the body, Falola said the court was not
convinced that Okpara sustained any injury.
Falola
said the court was able to establish the fact that Okpara and the monarch had
been having regular sexual #relationship before a misunderstanding ensued
between them.
He,
however, condemned such relationship involving a traditional ruler, saying his
action had brought his stool into disrepute as well as disgrace to his family
and community.
Pm
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For
those who missed her account, Read below
"I was raped by the Alowa of Ilowa on
Friday, March 25. Before then, I had been introduced to the monarch during the
last INEC registration exercise.
"One
day, on my way from the school, Oba Alli gave me a ride and told me that he
wanted me to be a computer facilitator for the schools in the community. That
was after he got to know that I was computer literate and we drew a plan on the
format the assignment would take." She explained that she later had a
session with the students and after introducing the system to them, the
traditional ruler offered to take her back to school. But instead of dropping
her at the school, he reportedly took her to his residence in Osogbo, a few
kilometers to her place of primary assignment.
"He
said I should not worry, that he would bring me back home and eventually we
arrived at his residence in Osogbo where he entertained me. It was getting late
and I wanted to go home as he started to caress me. I got up begging him, but
he turned down my pleas,"
She
explained further that the monarch later stripped her and went outside to soak
her clothes, stressing that before he came back, she had locked the door.
