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| Apapa Magistrates’ Court |
A 43-year-old hotelier, Femi Kulajolu, has been arrested by the police attached to the Isokoko division, Lagos State, for allegedly raping his younger brother’s 15-year-old daughter, Lola (pseudonym).
It was gathered that the minor was eight-month pregnant as a result of the alleged rape.
Kulajolu, who runs Christopher Hotels on Agor Road in the Isolo area of the state, was also being investigated for an attempted rape of his stepdaughter, Titi (not real name).
Titi’s experience was said to have prompted her mother, Ndidi, to report the two cases to the police, who arrested Kulajolu and arraigned him before an Apapa Magistrates’ Court.
The father of six was said to have raped Lola on three occasions at the hotel and her mother’s house on Majekodunmi Street, Meiran, while the mother was not at home, threatening her that she would die if she reveal the secret.
Our correspondent gathered that Lola had offended his father sometime in June 2015 and fled to the uncle’s hotel for the fear of being beaten. He was said to have given her a room in the hotel where she passed the night. In the midnight, he reportedly sneaked into the room and forcefully had sex with her.
She said, “I offended my father and fled home because he wanted to beat me. I went to my uncle’s hotel and slept there that night. While I was sleeping, he came in and raped me. He warned me not to tell anybody and threatened that if I did, he would kill me.”
Lola told the police that a few months after the encounter, her sister fell ill and her mother went to look after her at a hospital she was admitted, adding that Kulajolu came to their house and raped her again.
“My ailing sister was hospitalised and my mother was staying with her at a hospital. He (Kulajolu) came to pass the night in our house. In the night, he came to my room, covered my mouth and raped me again. He threatened me that he would kill me if I told anybody. He slept with me three times. I am now eight months pregnant,” she said.
Our correspondent learnt that Lola eventually opened up after much pressure on who was responsible for the pregnancy.
Kulajolu’s wife, Ndidi, said her husband was about raping 14-year-old Titi when he was caught.
Titi said, “Somebody came inside my room, switched off the light and slept on me. I woke up and discovered that the person had removed his clothes. I raised the alarm and everybody woke up and started searching the house to know the person. My sister noticed that somebody was hiding behind the cotton in the living room. We opened it and found my stepfather there. I broke into tears. When my mother asked him why he attempted to rape me, he started behaving as if he was drunk.”
However, the suspect denied raping his niece, adding that he was not responsible for the pregnancy.
He said, “After the death of my brother, around November 2015, her (Lola’s) stepmother came to me and told me that she was pregnant. She said the family of the boy responsible for her pregnancy had come and they had discussed. I did not rape her and was not responsible for the pregnancy.”
Kulajolu was subsequently arraigned on Thursday before an Apapa Magistrates’ Court on two counts bordering on rape and sexual assault.
The charges read in part, “That you, Femi Kulajolu, sometime in year 2015, on Dele Kulajolu Street, Lagos State, in the Apapa Magisterial District, did defile one Lola, thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, Nigeria, 2011.”
He pleaded not guilty to the charges and elected summary trial.
The presiding magistrate, Mrs. O.A. Adegite, granted him bail in the sum of N250,000 with two sureties in like sum and adjourned till March 17, 2016.
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