‘I’ll take care of pregnant victim’– Man jailed for defilement begs for mercy
A 22-year old man with an untamed libido shocked the Accra Circuit Court when he pleaded for mercy because his victim is pregnant.
When the presiding judge asked Fredrick Laryea to make a case for mitigation before she sentenced him for the crime of defiling a 15-year old, the accused person used the pregnant girl as a smokescreen for mercy.
With one palm in the other, he pleaded guilty but asked the judge for leniency.
“I’m pleading for mercy because the girl is pregnant and I have a four-year-old son too,” he said hoping to walk away freely or get a reduced sentence.
Wearing a white t-shirt over a pair of blue jeans and a printed slippers, he appeared remorseful. But it did not work.
The judge, Christina Cann, stared at him with disbelief and said Laryea needed to spend time in jail to serve as a deterrent to others like him who preyed on vulnerable minors.
The unmoved judge retorted, “You are hereby convicted on your plea. With all the seriousness given to the case, with the prevalence of the case [defilement and rape] in the country, the age of the victim and considering the fact that the accused has not offended the court before, I sentence you to 10 years imprisonment.”
The facts of the case as presented by deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Agnes Boafo, said the complainant is a trader residing at Bubuashie Orgle road.
The victim, happens to be the complainant’s daughter while the accused is unemployed staying in the same house together with both the complainant and victim.
Between the month of June and July 2018, the accused person started luring the victim into his room and had sexual intercourse with her.
When the amorous relationship got to the notice of the complainant, he warned him to stop and stay away from his daughter. The accused did so, but temporarily.
In March 2019, the accused resumed the sexual intercourse with the victim again in a bathroom inside the house and sometimes, in his room despite complainant’s warning.
This continued until September 2019 when the victim got pregnant as a result of the numerous sexual escapades.
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DSP Boafo said the complainant questioned the victim, who named Laryea as being responsible. The complainant confronted Laryea and the two fought over the incident.
Laryea subsequently went into hiding after the confrontation until he appeared on April 9, 2020 when the complainant spotted him at Dansoman Russia.
With the assistance of a police patrol team, he was arrested.
The complainant then reported the case at the Kaneshie DOVVSU and he was issued with police medical form to take the victim to the hospital for examination and treatment.
The medical officer after examination confirmed that, the victim had indeed been sexually abused and impregnated.
During interrogation, accused person admitted the offence and was subsequently charged and put before the court.