A Chief Magistrate Court, the Children, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Court, sitting in Awka, Anambra State has sentenced one Faith Obi and Chinenye Obete to multiple jail terms.
Faith Obi (32) and Chinenye Obete (41) were arraigned on a-5 count charge of child stealing, abduction of children and illegal dealing in children; fraudulently enticing away and habouring a 7-year old boy and forcefully isolating the child from lawful possession of their parents.
The offences are punishable under the Criminal Code, Laws of Anambra State of Nigeria, 1991, and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition and Protection) Laws of Anambra State, 2017 respectively.
Delivering judgment on the case, Presiding Chief Magistrate, Genevieve Osakwe said the accused were found guilty of all the five charges brought against them.
“Based on the oral testimonies of the defendants and the submissions of the plaintiff witnesses, as well as, other materials placed before the Court, in respect of the case; there are overwhelming pieces of evidence against the defendants, and the prosecutor had proved his case beyond reasonable doubts,” she said.
The Magistrate sentenced Faith Obi and Chinenye Obete, both to 4 years imprisonment in count 1; 5 years imprisonment in count 2; 5 years imprisonment in count 3; 5 years imprisonment in count 4 and a term of 6 months imprisonment in count 5.
She declared that all sentences would run concurrently, without any option of fine.
Reacting, Commissioner for Women and Social Welfare, Ify Obinabo expressed satisfaction with the court judgment, warning intending offenders to change or leave the state as the Governor Soludo-led administration would not hesitate to bring them to justice.
She also appreciated efforts of the Court in seeing that children were protected in the state, just as she promised to bring to book the second suspect currently at large.
The convicts, Faith Obi from Akpakumeze in Ụdị, Enugu state and Chinenye Obete from Ezamgbo in Ebonyi state were arraigned before the Court last year for committing offenses of abduction of children, illegal dealing in children and child stealing.
During hearing of the case last year, the duo were granted grace period of two weeks by the court to produce the stolen baby, but were unable to.
