Father sentenced to 14 years in prison for raping and impregnating daughter in Bayelsa – New National Star

The High Court of Bayelsa State, based in Yenagoa, has sentenced 41-year-old father Baridapsi Needam to 14 years in prison for raping and impregnating his daughter.

During the trial, the victim gave birth to a baby girl.

The Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General of Bayelsa State, Mr. Briyal Dambo, in suit number YHC/14C/2022, charged the defendant with rape under Section 1(1) of the Bayelsa State Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2021.

The State Prosecutor and Deputy Director in the Bayelsa State Ministry of Justice, Pere Amanda Egbuson, told the court that investigations revealed that the accused, Needam, began to rape his daughter since she was seven years old by inserting his fingers into her vagina. He started having sex with her in 2020 until she became pregnant in 2022.

In delivering the verdict, presiding judge DE Adokeme stated that the prosecution had presented credible evidence and referred to the DNA results which indicated with 99.99 percent certainty that the convicted man was the father of the child.

The court ruled that the prosecution had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Needam had committed rape and sentenced him to 14 years in prison.

Speaking after the verdict, Senior Prosecutor Egbuson, Deputy Director, Bayelsa State Ministry of Justice, said the verdict would serve as a deterrent to others who engage in such unthinkable acts, while stressing that it sent a clear message that the court would not tolerate such heinous acts.

She thanked the Honourable Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Biriyai Dambo SAN, for his immense support in conducting the DNA analysis to enable the prosecution to do justice in the prosecution of the case.

Reacting to the development, Dr Dise Ogbise-Goddy Harry, a prominent activist against violence against women and founder of Do Foundation, said civil society organisations in the state were delighted with the court’s ruling.

“The state government through the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Women Affairs, Children Affairs and Social Development and the Bayelsa State Gender Response Initiative Team has done a good job in protecting the victim and also the innocent baby. This should be a warning to all paedophiles to stay away from our children,” she said.

Convicted Needman was reported to police in 2022 by members of the state’s gender advocacy group, Gender Response Initiative Team (GRIT), when a concerned neighbor noticed that the victim was five months pregnant and the father was responsible for the pregnancy.