The police on Tuesday arraigned a 29-year-old man, Shehu Garuba, for allegedly stealing an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card and withdrawing N810, 000 from owner’s account.

The defendant, of no fixed address, was arraigned before an Ado-Ekiti Chief Magistrates’ Court, on a charge of stealing.

The prosecutor, Insp Moyosola Adesola, told the court that the defendant and one other at large, committed the offence on Sept. 23 at about 6:00p.m at Access Bank premises, Bank Road, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

She alleged that the defendant stole one ATM card belonging to the complainant, Mr Adewunmi Moses, and withdrew the sum of N810,000 from his account.

Adesola said that the offence contravened Section 295(1) (b) of the Criminal Law of Ekiti State, 2021.

She urged the court to adjourn the case to enable her study the file and assemble her witnesses.

The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge preferred against him.

The defendant’s counsel, Mrs Joy Raphael, urged the court to grant him bail, with a promise that he would not jump bail.

The Chief Magistrate, Mr Bankole Oluwasanmi, granted the defendant bail in the sum of N100,000 with one surety in like sum.

He adjourned the case until Oct. 30 for hearing.

A Federal High Court sitting in Kano, on Monday, has sentenced 33-year-old Nasiru Isa to seven years in the correctional centre for sexually exploiting an 11-year old girl.

The Presiding Hon. Justice S .M. Shu’aibu convicted Isa, who resides in Darmanawa Bayan Gidan Kallo of Tarauni Local Government Area (LGA) of the state, on a one-count charge of sexual exploitation.

Shu’aibu summarily tried and sentenced the defendant after he pleaded guilty to the charge.

He held that the Prosecution Counsel, Abdullahi Babale, proved his case beyond reasonable doubt and consequently sentenced the defendant to seven years without an option of fine.

According to him, the convict is to pay additional N1 million fine as compensation.

Earlier, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Kano State Command, alleged that the defendant committed the offence at Darmanawa Quarters,Tarauni LGA, Kano State on October 5.

Babale said that the defendant allegedly lured his neighbour’s 11-year-old daughter into his wife’s room and sexually exploited her.

“The defendant had sex with the survivor on three different occasions.

“Once in the defendant’s wife’s room and twice at an uncompleted building.

“The defendant gave the survivor bread, groundnut and N20 before sexually exploiting her,” Babale told the court.

The prosecution presented two exhibits, including the confessional statement of the defendant and the survivor’s testimony, to the court to prove his case.

Babale said that the offence contravened the provisions of section 16(1) of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015 and punishable under Sec 26(1) of TIP ACT 2015.

Hajiya Binta Bello, Director-General of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), has called for stricter penalties for rape to serve as a deterrent.

Bello made this demand during the close-out event of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Law implementation in Cross River on Monday, organised by Stand to End Rape.

Represented by Mr Jacob Oba, Head of Operations, NAPTIP, Cross River Command, Bello emphasised that rape was a heinous crime against humanity.

She advocated for collective efforts to eradicate it through timely reporting, assisting survivors, providing legal services, and awareness campaigns to reduce stigmatisation.

Bello appealed for a united front against rape, reaffirming NAPTIP’s commitment to combating VAPP Act violators, including human traffickers.

On her part, Dr Mercy Kwabe, Co-director of Stand to End Rape Initiative, acknowledged Nigeria’s progress in promoting equal rights through the VAPP Act.

However, she highlighted the need for better public understanding of the law, particularly in local languages.

Kwabe stressed the importance of amending the VAPP Act to incorporate harsher penalties for perpetrators, rather than repealing it.

Similarly, Ms Ann Awa, Chairperson of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Cross River Chapter, echoed the need for full implementation of the VAPP Act across states.

She suggested fine-tuning contentious sections rather than abolishing the law.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that in partnership with agencies like the National Orientation Agencies (NOA), Stand to End Rape Initiative conducted VAPP Act sensitisation in Ikot Awatim community, encouraging residents to report suspected cases.