Defilement: Lagos govt urges Supreme Court to affirm Doctor Olaleye’s life sentence

The Lagos State Government has urged the Supreme Court to uphold the conviction of Dr Olufemi Olaleye, who was found guilty of defiling his wife’s 16-year-old niece by the Lagos State Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court but later acquitted by the Court of Appeal.

Dr Olaleye, the Medical Director of Optimal Cancer Care Foundation, was sentenced to life imprisonment in October 24, 2023, after the trial court found him guilty of defilement.

Justice Oshodi had in his judgment held that the confessional statement of Olaleye, which he made before his former counsel, Mr Olalekan Buruji, and the DPO of Anthony Police Station, Patriciah, when he stated that he regretted his action, proved that he committed the offences.

“The convict is a dangerous offender who should be ashamed of himself, as he did not show any sign of remorse,” the judge had held, sentencing him to life imprisonment.

However, the Court of Appeal in Lagos, on November 29, 2024, overturned the conviction, citing inconsistencies in the prosecution’s evidence.

But dissatisfied with the appellate court’s decision, the Lagos State Government filed an appeal before the Supreme Court, seeking to set aside the acquittal and restore the trial court’s verdict.

In response, Olaleye, through his counsel, Chief Jubrin Okutepa (SAN), filed a preliminary objection dated September 29, 2025, urging the apex court to strike out the state’s appeal for lack of competence.

The state government, in its counter-argument contained in a brief dated August 18, 2025, asked the Supreme Court to dismiss the objection, describing it as “misplaced, unfounded, and steeped in technicality.”

 It maintained that the appeal was properly filed and should be heard on its merits.

In one of the key grounds, the state seeks clarification on whether the age of the victim, Prosecution Witness 2 (PW2), which was neither contested nor disputed during trial, could validly become an issue at the appellate stage.

The state further contended that it had proved beyond a reasonable doubt the offences of defilement of a child under Section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015 and sexual assault by penetration under Section 261 of the same law.

The Supreme Court is expected to determine whether the appellate court was right in overturning the conviction and whether Dr. Olaleye’s acquittal will stand.

The judge also held that Olaleye’s denial of an undertaking made at the police station did not hold water, saying the document he signed had his counsel, Buruji’s, NBA seal on it.

Text except headline courtesy of Punch