We were raped by fellow students, victims tell court

Agency Reporter

Two female students of the Lagos State University (LASU) on Monday narrated before an Ikeja Special Offences Court how they were allegedly robbed and raped at gunpoint by a fellow student.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that students who were both wearing niqabs (Islamic garment which covers the body leaving the eyes uncovered) in lengthy testimonies revealed to the court that they lost their virginity in the attack.

They made the revelation while testifying during the trial of a fellow student of LASU, Afeez Ogunbowale, over alleged armed robbery and rape.

Led in evidence by Mrs O.A Bajulaiye-Bishi, the prosecuting counsel, the students who were roommates, told the court that they were 200 level students when the alleged rape and armed robbery occurred on April 18, 2018.

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The witnesses told the court that that at around 3am, a torch light was flashed into their apartment, awaking them suddenly and five men including Ogunbowale who were armed with a gun and machete forced themselves into their apartment.

Student A (name withheld), 23, told the court “they took three phones, a gold chain, earpiece, power bank and N1, 200. Three of the men left, leaving the defendant and one other person who I cannot identify.

“The defendant told the other guy ‘I want to sleep with these girls’. The defendant went to the toilet with my roommate while the second man tried to rape me.

“The defendant had sex with me while I had asthmatic attack and my roommate was screaming and pleading for him to leave me alone and he said in pidgin English ‘if she wan die, make she die’.

“The other three men came back into the apartment and saw the chaos.

They told the two other men that this was not what they came here to do and they assisted in looking for my inhaler. My inhaler was found and they all left my apartment.”

Student A told the court that they lodged a report at the Ojo Barracks and they were referred to the Mirabel Center for medical examination and counselling.

“The case was transferred to the Festac police station, then to Ikeja Police Station. When the defendant was apprehended and brought to the Ikeja Police Station, he was shocked when he saw us there.

While being cross-examined by Mr Bisi Salau, the defence counsel, Student A said she recognised Ogunbowale as her assailant because she had seen him a number of times on campus.

She noted that the residence where the alleged crime occurred belonged to her aunt.

“I was a virgin until the day that incident occurred.”