Appeal court nullifies rape conviction of Lagos doctor Femi Olaleye

The Appeal Court sitting in Lagos has nullified the conviction of Femi Olaleye, managing director of Optimal Cancer Care Foundation, accused of rape.

 In a ruling delivered today November 29,  the appellate court held that the lower court erred in its judgment as it had no direct evidence to  

The appeal court thereafter discharged and acquitted Olaleye.

In October 2023, the special offences and domestic violence court in Lagos convicted Olaleye on a two-count charge of defilement of a child and s#xual assault by penetration.

Rahman Oshodi, the judge, had sentenced Olaleye to life imprisonment over rape.

Olaleye was arraigned in 2022 by the Lagos State Government at the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court, in Ikeja, Lagos. After his conviction in August 2023, his lawyer, Kemi Pinhero, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), filed an appeal in November 2023, arguing that there was no direct evidence to confirm the alleged victim’s age.

Delivering judgment today, the appeal court held that there was no direct evidence to establish the alleged victim’s age, claiming the prosecution failed to provide documentation proving she was 16 years old at the time of the offence.