12th May, 2020
By Jethro Ibileke
A staff of the Uselu Psychiatric Hospital, in Benin, Edo state, Monday Johnson (44), was on Monday sentenced to three months in prison by an Egor Magistrates’ Court, for assaulting a housewife, Mrs. Hope Ughabugo and her mother, Mrs. Tina Omogbai.
Also sentenced to prison for three months was his 36-year-old wife, Patience, for the same offence.
The couple was arraigned on a two-count charge of assault and conspiracy.
Earlier, the police prosecutor, Sgt. Daniel Ifidon told the court that the defendants committed the crime on 20 August 2019, at Benin Technical School Road, within Egor magisterial district.
He said that Patience unlawfully assaulted the complainant, Ughabugo, by blowing her on her stomach.
According to the prosecutor, “Ughabugo and her mother, Mrs. Omogbai, had entered ‘Keke NAPEP’ at Benin Technical School Junction, while Patience forcefully dragged Ughabugo out of the Keke NAPEP, alleging that she came first.
“When Patience husband’s Johnson noticed the action of his wife and the other woman, he parked his car, and without asking questions, joined his wife and assaulted Ughabugo’s mother by slapping her on her face.
“Mr. Johnson later took his wife away in his car. It was from the licencing office that he was traced to his place of work at Psychiatric Hospital in Benin, where he was arrested.”
The prosecutor said the offence contravened the provision of sections 516 and 351 of the Criminal Code Cap. 48 Vol. 11, Laws of the defunct Bendel State of Nigeria, 1976, now applicable in Edo.
Delivering judgement in the case, the Magistrate, Mrs. Florence Aghedo, who found the couple guilty of assault, sentenced them to three months in prison.
Mrs. Aghedo who gave the convicts an option of N5,000 fine each, however, ordered them to pay N10,000 to the complainant, Mrs. Ughabugo, as compensation.
She, however, dismissed count charge of conspiracy filed against the defendants, noting that there was no trace of conspiracy as they were husband and wife.