A Benin Edo State High Court has delivered a verdict in a highly publicized case, discharging and acquitting a University of Benin (UNIBEN) lecturer, Omowumi Ekundayo Steven, accused of sexual assault and rape of a final-year female student.
Steven, a lecturer in the Department of English and Literature, had been on trial since 2022. However, in a ruling delivered last Friday, Justice Mary Itsueli acquitted the lecturer, citing the prosecution’s failure to prove its case.
The judge found that the prosecution’s evidence failed to meet the required standards and was not substantiated by the testimonies of the five prosecution witnesses. Justice Itsueli noted that the University of Benin Teaching Hospital’s (UBTH) medical report was not tendered as evidence, and the prosecution was unable to establish the three main elements of rape: penetration, sexual intercourse, and lack of consent.
According to the judge, the police investigation was also deemed inadequate, with the prosecution unable to provide evidence linking the lecturer to the alleged acts. Citing the principle that “the claimant is required to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt in a criminal case,” Justice Itsueli discharged and acquitted the lecturer, upholding the defense counsel’s no-case submission.
The lecturer, Omowumi Ekundayo Steven, was initially accused of sexually assaulting a final-year female student in his office on October 5, 2021. Following the allegations, he was issued a query and placed on interdiction pending the outcome of the court case. He was later arrested and granted bail on stringent conditions.
With this verdict, the lecturer is now free from the allegations leveled against him, bringing closure to a case that has generated significant public interest.
