Cross River: Another Räpist Convicted, Jäiled in Calabar

By Stanley Ekpenyong, South-South Bureau Chief

Three weeks after a 25-year-old man, Aniedi Mfon was sentenced to life imprisonment for dëfiling an eight years old girl in Calabar, a High court in the Cross River state capital has jäiled another rapist, Prince Joseph Mark.

Also two months ago one Ernest Odong Oyira, was convicted of 14 years imprisonment after being found guilty of räping 10 years old girl in the city

A federal High court sitting in Calabar presided over by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu sentenced Mark to three years in imprisonment for räping six and 11 years old minors. The convict was found guilty of two out of the four charges.

In the suit number FHC/CA/86C/2023, between the Federal Republic of Nigeria versus Prince Joseph Mark, the Judge found him guilty of the punishable offence committed on May 22, 2023.

Mark who is a neighbour to the two minors had on the 22nd of May, 2023, accosted them when they were sent to drop off cooked Kpomo( animal hides) which their father sold to another neighbour who sells palm wine in the neighbourhood.

Their father had requested that the neighbour help him sell the remaining Kpomo while selling his palm wine for the day. However, Mark deceitfully lured the children into his shop on the pretext he wanted to buy the Kpomo.

He then sent one of the children to go get him a bottle of coke, which he later drugged, forcefully gave the children to drink and raped both of them.

Half conscious, the children were able to find their way home and reported what had transpired to their parents before they finally lost consciousness.

The incident was reported to Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps who promptly arrested the rapist.