Pastor Arrested For Raping 14- year-old Girl In Lagos

A Christian cleric, Ogunleye Cornelius,
was on Friday charged before a Yaba
Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos over
alleged defilement of a teenager.
Cornelius, 50, who resides at No. 4,
Abiodun St., Makoko in Yaba area of
Lagos, is facing a two-count charge
of defilement and sexual assault.
Prosecutor Peter Nwangwu told the
court that the accused committed
the offences sometime in December
2014 at No. 4 Abiodun St., Makoko,
Yaba. Nwangwu, an ASP, said the
accused, who had been eyeing the
14-year-old girl in the
neighbourhood, sent her on an
errand to buy sachet water for him.
According to him, the accused lured
the girl into his apartment and had
canal knowledge of her. The
prosecutor said the offences were a
contravention of Sections 135 and
137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos
State, 2011.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports
that Section 135 stipulates
imprisonment for seven years, while
Section 137 provides life
imprisonment for child defilement.
The accused, however, pleaded
innocence of the offences.
Ruling on the bail application of the
accused, the Chief Magistrate, Mrs
A.F. Adeeyo, granted him bail in the
sum of N200,000 with two sureties
in like sum. The case has been fixed
for Aug. 3 for trial.