A Magistrates’ Court in Imo State has sentenced a woman, Rose Okon, to six months in prison for assaulting her 14-year-old niece, whom she was caring for.
Chief Magistrate C.J. Nkwoada handed down the sentence after Okon pleaded guilty to an assault charge brought against her by the police.
The court, however, gave the convict the option of paying a N50,000 fine in lieu of the prison term.
The prosecution alleged that Okon assaulted the teenager on 19 September at Umuneke, Ngor Okpala, in the Ngor Okpala Magisterial District, by pouring hot water on her head and body, causing grievous harm.
The charge was brought under Section 355 of the Criminal Code, Cap C38, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, as applicable in Imo State.
During the proceedings, prosecution counsel, Sampson Obodo, presented photographs showing the injuries sustained by the teenager.
He also tendered statements made to the police by the complainant and the victim, as well as a statement from Stand For Humanity Foundation, a human rights organisation that petitioned the authorities over the incident.
Before sentencing Okon, the court invited her to make an allocution. She appealed for mercy.
Her counsel, Innocent Onyekwere, also urged the court to temper justice with mercy when determining the sentence.
Okon’s arrest followed a petition by Stand For Humanity Foundation, which said it intervened after receiving information about the alleged abuse.
Speaking to journalists outside the court, the organisation’s president, Chidiebube Okeoma, said the group had pursued the case to demonstrate that child abuse was punishable under Nigerian law.
Okeoma, a journalist and child-rights advocate, said the conviction should serve as a warning to people who abuse children.
He led more than 20 members of the organisation to the court during the proceedings.
The case has drawn attention to the legal protections available to children and the responsibility of caregivers to safeguard minors placed in their care.
