A Federal Capital Territory High Court has convicted Bishop Kenneth Duke, a prominent Abuja-based clergyman, to 20 years in prison without the option of a fine for rape.
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons confirmed this in a statement issued on Wednesday by its National Press Officer, Vincent Adekoye, captioned ‘An FCT High Court sentenced a 52-year-old bishop to 20 years imprisonment for rape.’
NAPTIP sued the 52-year-old from Cross River State for raping a 12-year-old girl (name withheld).
Adekoye stated that the victim is the daughter of a bishop’s church member, “who was entrusted under the care of his family.”
In case number. CR/702/2023 Federal Republic of Nigeria vs Bishop Kenneth Duke, the defendant was arraigned before Court 16 on 02/11/2023 on two charges of rape and maliciously causing emotional and psychological torture to the victim.
The crime claimed that on March 6, 2023, the prisoner, who lives behind Dantata Construction Company in Dakwa, Abuja, had carnal knowledge of the victim without consent, which is criminal under the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015.
According to NAPTIP, the victim, who is from Ondo State, was living in Lagos before being moved to Abuja to live with her mother.
According to the report, on March 5, 2023, “her mother took her to the church located at Dantata Zuba Expressway, and after the service, she was taken to the family house of the bishop, who is also the pastor of the church, so that she could stay with them and allow the bishop’s wife to take her to where she would learn a skill that both families had previously discussed.”
“It was discovered that the following day, March 6, 2023, the felon, father of five children, sent his children on an errand, and while being alone with the victim at home at around 10:00 a.m., gave her some mathematical work to perform, and as she was trying to accomplish it, the bishop pounced on her, attacked her, covered her mouth and violently raped her on the chair despite her crying and pleading” Naptip said.
The cleric was found guilty of one count of rape in Justice Adebiyi Osolo’s ruling and given the appropriate punishment without the possibility of a fine.
The development followed NAPTIP agents’ successful rescue of nine pregnant girls from a suspected baby factory inside a huge estate in Abuja’s Ushafa neighborhood.
A suspected trafficking agent who has not yet been identified recruited the victims using an online platform and imprisoned them in a rented flat within the estate.
After a concerned individual reported the peculiar condition and movement in the vicinity, NAPTIP conducted a raid on the facility.
Speaking to the conviction, Binta Bello, the Director General of the agency, thanked the judiciary for the historic ruling, stating that it will serve as a warning to others.
“I would want to express my gratitude to the judiciary for this ruling. It will undoubtedly act as a disincentive to others. NAPTIP will not spare anyone discovered to have broken any of the laws, regardless of status, regarding human trafficking or violence against humans, as I warned a few weeks ago.
“Rape is a severe crime that causes trauma and long-lasting psychological effects on the victim. To prevent this horrible crime and to safeguard our children, we must all stand up.
How could a 52-year-old guy possibly violate a 12-year-old girl? It is illegal, and it hurts. I am relieved that the convicted person has received the appropriate penalty from the legal system for his actions. “This serves as a warning to others,” said the DG.
