KWASU Lecturer Arraigned in Ilorin over Sexual Assault

Hammed Shittu

Kwara State University (KWASU) lecturer, Pelumi Adewole, was yesterday arraigned before a Magistrate Court in Ilorin over offence bothering on sexual assault and malpractice.

The suspect was arrested by the men of the State Intelligence Bureau (SIB) over offences bordering on ‘criminal intimidation, sexual harassment and examination malpractices among others’.

The offences contravened Sections 397, 95 of Penal Code Law and Section 3(320) of the Examination Malpractices Act CAP E15 Law of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

The Kwara State chapter of the Federation of International Women Lawyers (FIDA) was also a party in the case.

The President of FIDA, Mrs. Grace Okoduwa, told journalists yesterday that the suspect just wedded in June.

According to the First Information Report (FIR), a petition datedOctober 15, 2021, was written by one Adegunsoye Faith Tosin, a student of the department of Pure and Applied Science.

Adegunsoye alleged that sometimes in September 2021, Adewole, who is a lecturer assigned to teach her a course, MLS 212 Cell and Molecular Biology, called her and threatened to fail her in her forthcoming examinations if she refused to have sexual intercourse with him.

Due to the threat issued by the defendant, the police instructed Adegunsoye to play along with him in order to obtain raw evidence.

The lecturer, thereafter, lured the student into his bedroom apartment around 8:30p.m. at Taoheed Road, Basin Area in Ilorin, where he gave her a new question paper and answer script to rewrite her examination with a promise to have sexual intercourse with her in the night.

The suspect was, however, apprehended in the process by the detectives from SIB, who were hiding at a location.

He was said to have confessed to the allegations during the course of investigation.

However, the suspect denied the allegations.

Prosecutor, Nasiru Yusuf, in his submission, told the court that the offences were not bailable, adding that sexual harassment has become rampant in the society.

He urged the court to deny the accused bail.

But the lead defense counsel, Mr. A.J Opalekunde, said the defendant is still presumed innocent until proven guilty and sought bail for his client.

In his ruling, the Presiding Magistrate, Ibrahim Mohammed, however, obliged the application of the defence and granted the accused bail in the sum of N200, 000, and adjourned the case till December 8, 2021, for further mention.