Barren woman bags five years imprisonment for child theft

An Osogbo Chief Magistrate Court on Friday sentenced a 38-year-old housewife, Khadijat Ajisefini, to five years imprisonment for stealing a 21-day-old baby.

The Chief Magistrate, Adebayo Lasisi, who did not give the convict an option of fine, said that the prosecution proved the case against her beyond reasonable doubt.

During proceedings in the case which began on Jan. 23, 2014, the prosecution told the court that Ajisefini kidnapped the child at about 6 p.m. in Technical College Area of Osogbo, on Jan. 20, 2014.

The prosecutor, Insp. Abiodun Fagboyinbo, had told the court that the convict deceitfully collected the baby from the mother, Jemilat Oluwasegun.

According to him, the convict tricked and collected the baby from his mother in a deceitful manner and fled from Osogbo on a motorcycle to Ilobu town.

He said that the convict, who was arrested in the community she ran to, confessed that she stole the baby in order to save her marriage.

He said that the woman disclosed that she had no child of her own after several years of marriage.

Fagboyinbo said the offence contravened Section 349(9) of the Criminal Code of Osun 2003.

The Counsel to the convict, Mrs Muslimat Nagode, had appealed to the court to be lenient to her, stressing that a barren woman needed counselling and not incarceration. (NAN)