Court Dismisses Police Alleged Cybercrime Charge against Female Doctor 

Alex Enumah in Abuja 

A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a case of alleged cybercrime brought against a female medical doctor, Bolanle Aseyan by the Inspector General of Police.

The court in a judgment delivered by Justice Peter Lifu, dismissed the case on the grounds that the police failed to establish the ingredients of the charge.

The police had arraigned the female medical doctor on a four-count charge bordering on defaming, harassing and intimidating her fellow United Kingdom-based medical doctor, Olufunmilayo Ogunsanya, in the social media.

Among others, the police accused Aseyan of causing harm to the reputation of her former boyfriend in the social media contrary to the provisions of Cyberbullying Prevention and Prohibition Act.

In its bid to establish the allegations, the prosecution called three witnesses, while the defendant called two in her defence.

Delivering judgment, the court observed that both Ogunsanya and the defendant are medical doctors by training and were in relationship before it turned sour.

The court in addition found that the two had sexual intercourse while together in the United Kingdom and that both made publications in the social media against each other after they broke up.

He further found that the Metropolitan Police in the United Kingdom and their counterparts in Nigeria were used by the estranged lovers against each other while the differences persisted.

Concluding, Justice Lifu held that the ingredients of the charges against the female medical doctor were not proved by police as required by law.

The judge held that failure of the prosecution to place the X handle of the defendant before the court as exhibit was fatal to the case.

According to the judge, the elements of threat and intimidation were not made available to the court whereas there was evidence of love between the two parties before the altercations and hostilities.

In all, the judge held that all the four counts in the charge failed and accordingly dismissed them.

He subsequently ordered that seized properties including the international passport of the defendant must be returned to her forthwith by police upon being served with the judgment.

The female doctor who claimed to have met Ogunsanya online in 2019, had in 2020 travelled to the United Kingdom to meet the man but claimed that she was raped on her first day after taking some alcohol.

She alleged that Ogunsanya offered her wine shortly after her arrival in Leeds on March 7, 2020, following a long flight, lost luggage and physical exhaustion.

She alleged passing out after the drink and waking up to find out that Ogunsanya had allegedly had sex with her without her consent after which he allegedly maltreated her before she found her way back to Nigeria.