A 63-year-old cleric, Chris Douglas, has been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja for raping a church member’s daughter.

Delivering judgment on Thursday, Justice Rahman Oshodi held that Douglas, who is the General Overseer of Peculiar Generation Assembly Church, Oshodi, abused his position of spiritual authority and trust to exploit the victim.

The court described his conduct as a gross betrayal of trust, noting that he was seen as a father figure by the victim and her family.

“The convict occupied a position of spiritual authority and was regarded as a father figure by the victim and her family,” the judge said.

He added that rather than protect that trust, the convict “betrayed it in the most reprehensible manner.”

The court further held that the offences occurred in a hotel on several occasions, stressing that the victim and her family depended on the cleric for spiritual guidance at the time.

Justice Oshodi also ruled that the victim suffered severe psychological trauma as a result of the abuse.

“The court accepts the evidence that the victim suffered depression and recurring suicidal thoughts as a direct consequence of the convict’s actions,” he said.

During the trial, the prosecution, led by the Director of Public Prosecution, Dr Babajide Martins, called five witnesses, including the victim, her mother and a medical doctor.

Medical and documentary exhibits were also tendered in evidence before the court.

The victim told the court that the cleric first drugged and raped her in September 2017.

“I trusted him like a spiritual father. I never imagined he could do this to me,” she testified.

Her mother also told the court that the incident was discovered after she confronted the cleric.

“When I went to his church, he cried and said it was the work of the devil. He begged us in front of the elders,” she said.

She added that the matter was later reported to a human rights organisation, the police at Makinde Division, and the Mirabel Centre for medical examination.

The convict, however, denied the allegations, insisting that the relationship was consensual.

But Justice Oshodi rejected the claim, holding that the defence was not supported by the totality of evidence before the court.

“The defence of consent is not supported by the totality of the evidence before the court,” the judge ruled.

The court further held that while some alleged incidents were not sufficiently proved to have occurred before January 2018, the prosecution successfully established rape in relation to incidents when the victim was already 18 years old.

Douglas was consequently discharged on six counts of defilement and sexual assault but found guilty on three counts of rape.

Justice Oshodi sentenced him to life imprisonment on each count, holding that the sentences shall run concurrently.

“The law must protect the vulnerable, and this court will not hesitate to punish abuse of trust in the strongest terms,” he said.

The court also ordered that Douglas’ name be entered into the Lagos State Sexual Offenders Register.

Source: PM News