By Deborah Nnamdi
A Federal High Court in Abuja, on Monday, convicted and sentenced a woman, Benedicta Usen, also known as Mrs Carol Omomoh, to five-year imprisonment without an option of fine for trafficking a lady to Italy for prostitution.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Inspector-General (I-G) of Police had, in the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/121/2019, named Omomoh as sole defendant.
In the eight-count amended charge dated Oct 24, 2022, the I-G alleged that the defendant Omomoh and Mrs Oyomiya Lamidi ‘f’ (now at large), sometime in year 2011 in Lagos, conspired between themselves to commit the offence by recruiting and transporting Miss Cynthia Loveth Ese Omoieke to Italy through the United Kingdom (UK) by means of deception and abuse of position of vulnerability.
The offence is punishable under Section 27 of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration (TPPEA) Act, 2015.
In count five, she and Mrs Oyomiya Mama Lamidi ‘f’ (now at large), sometime in 2011 in Lagos, did conspired to commit an offence by a organising and facilitating the foreign travel of Omoieke to Italy through the UK which travel promoted prostitution and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 27 of the TPPEA Act, 2015.
Omomoh, however, pleaded not guilty to all the counts and the prosecution called two witnesses to establish its case against her.
Justice Inyang Ekwo, in a judgment, said he found that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt with respect to each and every allegation in the eight-count charge.
Justice Ekwo consequently sentenced Omomoh to two years and six months imprisonment each in counts one, three, five and seven without an option of fine.
The judge also sentenced her in counts two, four, six and eight to five years imprisonment each without an option of fine.
He ordered that all the jail terms must run concurrently with effect from Feb 3.
Justice Ekwo observed that Omomoh’s denials in the face of her evidence-in-chief as 1st defence witness (DW1) only exposed her “as a barefaced liar, a crooked and dishonest human being.”
According to the judge, to even have the audacity to stand in court and deny the statement she made voluntarily to the police shows how depraved she is.
“The evidence also exposes her as being in the business of procuring young vulnerable women like Miss Cynthia Omoieke for prostitution abroad.
“People like the defendant must be taken out of the society for good.
“I, therefore, make an order convicting the defendant of the charge In counts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 as charged.“This is the order of this court,” the judge ruled.
