A 67-year-old man named James Olajoyetan has been arrested for raping a 12-year-old girl in the Ejigbo area of Lagos State, local media reports.
Mr James Olajoyetan, a Keke driver, allegedly sexually assaulted the 12-year-old girl on four occasions. According to the reports, the girl had come to spend the recent Sallah holiday with her visually impaired grandfather in the Ejigbo area of Lagos State when the incident happened.
Mr Olajoyetan reportedly covered the girl’s mouth during the act to prevent her from her screaming.
Narrating what happened, the young girl said Mr James Olajoyetan had called her in the pretence of sending her to buy something for him.
She said:
“When I went, I stood in front of his door. He told me to come inside to collect the money. When I did, he shut the door and raped me. While he was doing it, I wanted to shout but he hit me several times and covered my mouth.”
A neighbour said to be returning from a journey was alerted by the girl’s cry. Out of curiosity, he peeped through the window, forced the door open, and caught Olajoyetan in the act. He raised the alarm that alerted residents who rushed to the apartment and handed the suspect to the police at Ejigbo division.
During interrogation, Mr James Olajoyetan claimed he was under a spell.
He said:
“I had a disagreement with a pastor in Christ Apostolic Church, Kajola. He accused me of being instrumental to his leaving the church. Six months ago, he boasted that he would place a spiritual load on my head and ensure I was publicly disgraced. Since then, I didn’t know what came over me. They claimed I raped the girl four times, but it was only once. My wife died in 2005. I have six children, the first is 35 years old while the last is 17 years. I am still shocked that I could lay with a child that is much younger than my last child. When she came in, I gave her N100 and she hugged me. At that point, I lost my sense of judgement.”
