Father sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for raping, impregnating his Daughter
41-year-old Baridapsi Needam has been sentenced to 14 years imprisonment by the Bayelsa State High Court for raping and impregnating his daughter.
Needman, who hails from Ogani Wily Kaira Community in Ogoni in Rivers State, was reported to the police by members of the state gender advocacy group, Gender Response Initiative Team (GRIT) in 2022, when a neighbour realised that the victim was five months pregnant with the father being responsible for it.
Bayelsa State Commissioner of Justice and Attorney-General Biriyai Dambo, in the suit numbered YHC/14C/2022, charged the accused with the offence of rape, contrary to Section 1(1) of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law of Bayelsa State, 2021.
It was reported that the victim delivered a baby girl while the trial was pending.
The 14-year-old girl, who was in Junior Secondary School 3, was allegedly sleeping on the bed with her father after the death of her mother, her two younger brothers were made to sleep on the floor.
According to the State Prosecuting Counsel and Deputy Director in the Bayelsa State Ministry of Justice, Pere Amanda Egbuson, investigations revealed that the accused started defiling his daughter since she was seven years old
He was said to have been inserting his fingers into her vagina and started having carnal knowledge of her in 2020 until she eventually became pregnant in 2022.
The presiding judge, Justice D.E. Adokeme, while delivering his judgement stated that the prosecution gave valid evidence and made reference to the DNA result, which revealed a 99.99 per cent positive report that the convict is the father of the child.
The court then asserted that Needam committed the offence of rape and sentenced him to 14 years imprisonment.
Commenting after the judgement, the lead prosecuting counsel, Pere Amanda Egbuson stated that the judgement will serve as a lesson to others.
