Ijesa monarch must answer rape charge, court rules

Posted by admin Headlines, Osun, State News Monday, May 21st, 2012

By GBENGA OLARINOYE

OSOGBO – The embattled Alowa of Ilowa in Obokun Local Government Area of Osun State, Oba Adebukola Alli, standing trial before an Osogbo High Court for alleged rape of an ex- corps member, yesterday, got off the hook on three of the four charges against him.

Justice Oyejide Falola dismissed three charges out of the four counts preferred against the monarch for the failure of the prosecutor to substantiate the allegation before the court.

Alli, who was accompanied to court by his wife, had, since 2010, been facing four counts charge of rape, kidnap, assault and deprivation of the liberty of the ex-corps member and had filed a no case submission before the court on the last trial of the case.

The court, however, ruled that the monarch has no case to answer as regards the allegations of kidnap, assault and deprivation of liberty, stating that the prosecution had not tendered any proof to support their allegations.

Justice Oyejide Falola, however, overruled the monarch’s application of a no-case submission on count one of the rape case and ordered the accused traditional ruler to appear before the court to defend himself on how he got the consent of the victim before making love to her as he had confessed to the court that he made love to her and that both of them enjoyed it.

“The accused person has set up a defence of justification by confessing to have made love to the victim. On count one, I overruled the no-case submission, but sustained the no-case submission on count two, three and four,” Falola ruled

Meantime, Alli has condemned the suspension of 35 students of Ifelodun Grammar School, Kiloru, who were on the court premises to protest against his continuous trial penultimate week.

At the resumed hearing of the case before Justice Falola, Alli, who spoke through his counsel, Taofeek Tewogbola, lashed out at the state Commissioner of Police, Mrs. Kalafite Adeyemi, and the Director of Public Prosecution, Mr. Dapo Adeniji, for their alleged role in the suspension of the students.

The government had last week through the Ministry of Women Affairs suspended 35 students of the school owned by Ilowa community and five other towns in the area for staging a protest on the court premises while they were supposed to be in their classrooms.

-Vanguardwp_posts