A graduate of the University of Lagos, Imonitie Ilen-Otuma,
has been arrested by the police for allegedly raping a 27-year-old woman in the
Lekki area of Lagos.
PUNCH Metro
learnt that Imonitie, who studied Estate Management, had earlier been arrested
in May for raping a colleague, and had been freed when the victim’s family
agreed to withdraw the case.
Our correspondent gathered that in the second incident,
which occurred on Friday, July 10, the suspect allegedly took his victim,
Precious (pseudonym), to a party in the Lekki area where he allegedly
brutalised and raped her.
It was gathered that Precious, on that day, had told her
parents that she was going to see Imonitie, who was reportedly having a party.
The duo were said to have gone to see a movie at the
Adeniran Ogunsanya Mall, in the Surulere area.
It was learnt that they later went to a party in the Lekki
area, where Precious insisted on going home when it was around 12am, but the
suspect allegedly refused.
Our correspondent gathered that instead, Imonitie allegedly lured
the lady to the backseat of his car where he squeezed her throat and raped her.
The victim was said to have alerted her family to the
incident, and the police from the Maroko division arrested the suspect.
Speaking with PUNCH Metro, the victim’s mother said
the suspect allegedly threatened to strangle her daughter and dump her corpse
by the roadside, despite her pleas to him that she was a virgin.
She added that Precious was still udergoing treatment in a
hospital in the area due to the severity of the injuries she sustained.
She said, “My daughter is a sickle cell sufferer. She met
Imonitie in the university. He was a year ahead of her. They started dating,
but my daughter warned him that there would be no sex until they got married.
Later, she learnt that the man had dated one of her friends, which Imonitie
confirmed. So, since that time, they ended the relationship.
“The week that the incident happened, she said both of them
met again on BBM, and he started persuading her to let them go out again. On
that Friday, he called her and said he was taking her to see a movie.
“After the movie, they went clubbing in the Lekki area,
where he raped her. She told us that she was not feeling strong. She said she
remembered being walked out of the club to the back of Imonitie’s car.
“But when she opened her eyes, it was daytime, and he was on
top of her at the back of the car. That was when the struggle started. He beat
her up, squeezed her neck, while she begged him that she was a virgin, and he
should not rape her. But he ignored her pleas and after the act, he gave her
some tissues to clean the blood.”
Our correspondent gathered that while Precious was being
taken home, she sent a text message home that her parents should get the police
because she had been brutalised and raped.
It was learnt that the police at Maroko thereafter arrested
the suspect after he was beaten up by some youths on the victim’s street.
Imonitie’s mother, who spoke with PUNCH Metro on the
telephone, said her son loved the lady and wanted to marry her. She added that
he did not mean to brutalise or kill her as claimed.
She said, “My son has told me that he loves the girl and
wants to marry her. He is AA, and the girl is SS. So, they are compatible. He
did not mean to kill her as claimed. If he wanted to, would he still drive her
home after the incident? I am not justifying his actions, but he was tempted to
commit the act. His intention is to marry the girl.”
Our correspondent learnt that the matter was also reported
to the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team. It was gathered
that the state Department of Public Prosecutions had also requested for the
case file from the police.
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Kenneth
Nwosu, confirmed the incident.
He said the matter had been transferred to the State
Department of Criminal Investigation, Yaba.
Nwosu added, “The suspect is with us, and the matter is
being investigated at the SDCI, Yaba.”
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