An Ekiti State High Court has sentenced a 35-year-old woman, Joy Ikoja, to seven years imprisonment for causing grievous harm after severely injuring her lover.
Ikoja, during her arraignment, was said to have committed the offence during an altercation with victim and was put up for trial a two-count charge bordering on attempted murder and causing grievous harm under Sections 241 and 255 of the Criminal Law of Ekiti State, 2021 , by the Ekiti State Ministry of Justice
While the court discharged and acquitted her of attempted murder, it found her guilty of causing grievous harm and imposed the maximum sentence prescribed by law.
The case, marked HAD/14C/2025, arose from an incident that occurred on April 12, 2025, at the Irona area of Ado-Ekiti.
According to court records, Ikoja and the victim, Ibrahim Usman, had lived together as romantic partners in a single-room apartment for about three years before their relationship deteriorated after she accommodated her friend, Mayowa Ayomide, who was experiencing housing difficulties, with Usman’s consent.
Evidence presented before the court showed that the arrangement later turned sour after Usman and Ayomide allegedly began a secret sexual relationship while living under the same roof.
The prosecution told the court that on the evening of April 12, 2025, Ikoja returned home between 7:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. to find the apartment locked from the inside. After gaining access, she allegedly discovered Usman and Ayomide in bed together, sparking a violent confrontation.
During the altercation, Usman reportedly attempted to shield Ayomide by pushing her away and blocking Ikoja’s path. The situation then escalated, with Ikoja allegedly grabbing Usman’s genitals with extreme force, inflicting a deep laceration on his scrotum that exposed his testes.
Usman was rushed to the Police Cottage Hospital in Okesa, Ado-Ekiti, where doctors initially stitched the wound. However, complications later developed as the injury became infected and dead tissue was exposed, necessitating his transfer to the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital for specialist urological treatment.
To establish its case, the prosecution, led by F.O. Awoniyi, called four witnesses, including police investigators and the attending medical doctor. The prosecution also tendered five exhibits, comprising photographic evidence, a certificate of compliance, the defendant’s confessional statement and a medical report detailing the extent of the injuries.
The defendant, represented by Legal Aid Council counsel Adeyinka Opaleke, pleaded not guilty to the charges. During the trial, she retracted her extra-judicial confessional statement, insisting she never made any statement to the police and claiming that although a brief fight occurred, she did not inflict the injuries sustained by the victim.
In her ruling, Justice Oyinkansola Oluboyede held that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Ikoja intended to kill the victim or acted with the premeditated intent required to sustain a conviction for attempted murder. The court therefore acquitted her of that charge.
However, the judge ruled that the evidence overwhelmingly established the offence of grievous harm, holding that the defendant’s confessional statement was voluntary and was sufficiently corroborated by medical evidence, police testimony and other exhibits tendered before the court.
Justice Oluboyede dismissed Ikoja’s denial as an afterthought designed to evade criminal responsibility, adding that the totality of the evidence left no doubt about her culpability.
Before pronouncing sentence, the judge observed that the defence would have been better served by pursuing a plea bargain rather than contesting what she described as a straightforward case supported by direct evidence.
According to the court, a plea agreement could have reduced legal expenses, shortened the duration of the trial, secured a quicker resolution and possibly resulted in reduced charges or a lighter sentence, while also sparing the victim the ordeal of prolonged court proceedings.
The judge condemned the growing incidence of domestic violence fuelled by uncontrolled emotions, stressing that emotional distress or betrayal can never justify violent conduct.
“This Court understands that the Defendant’s action was mostly borne out of uncontrolled emotions and passion against her intimate partner. However, there is no justification for violence and this should serve as a deterrence to any other aggressive partners or would-be aggressive partners,” Justice Oluboyede said.
She consequently sentenced Ikoja to seven years’ imprisonment, the maximum punishment prescribed under Section 255 of the Criminal Law of Ekiti State, 2021, for the offence of grievous harm, excluding the period she had already spent in detention.