legal right or liability dependent on the existence of facts which he or she
asserts must prove that those facts exist. And Section 144 (1) of the
Evidence Act (supra) also provides that the standard of proof in criminal
cases or where a crime is alleged to have been committed is proof beyond
reasonable doubt.
It is settled law that, “The burden of proof in all criminal cases is upon the
prosecution to prove the Accused guilty of the offence charged beyond
reasonable doubt. It is not for the Accused to prove his innocence as that
will negate the constitutional provision that the Accused is presumed
innocent until proved other wise.” See the Supreme Court of Nigeria case of
NJOKWU V. STATE (2013) 9 NWLR (Pt. 1360)417 at 427 held 10. To
prove the offence of rape with which the Accused is charged, the prosecution
must prove beyond reasonable doubt (a) that sexual intercourse has taken
place; (b) that it took place without the consent of a woman or a girl; and,
(c) that the Accused person was the man who committed the crime. See the
case of IKO V. STATE (supra)
In the instant case, PW1 and PW3 did not lead any evidence of probative
value to establish the offence of rape as seen in their evidence above. PW2
testified and tended to inculpate the Accused. However, her evidence is of
doubtful validity and fraught with doubts. To start with the evidence of PW2
(prosecutrix) that the Accused had series of sexual intercourse with her in
December, 2014 which resulted in her pregnancy and eventual delivery of a
baby on the 20th day of February, 2015 (a period of two months) is
unbelievable, unempirical and biologically invalid. It lacks medical veracity.
Also, the prosecutrix’s evidence that one night at 1:00am the Accused left his
wife who was still awake to have sex with her (prosecutrix) to the knowledge
of the wife of the Accused (who did not characteristically as a woman raise
any alarm that night) is doubtful and antithetical to the common course of
events. The law is trite that doubts in the evidence of the prosecution should
be resolved in favour of the Accused. The foregoing doubts are hereby
resolved in favour of the Accused.
To crown it all, under Section 180 (2) (a) of the Evidence Act, 1994 rape, and
other sexual offences against complainants require corroboration.
Corroboration is defined under Section 179 of the Evidence Act (supra) as
JUDGMENT – THE STATE VS MUSA KEITA 27/7/2016
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