A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced Benedicta Usen, also known as Mrs. Carol Omomoh, to five years in prison without the option of a fine for trafficking a young woman for prostitution.
Justice Inyang Ekwo, delivering judgment on Monday, found Omomoh guilty on all eight counts, stating that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. He imposed concurrent sentences of two years and six months each for counts one, three, five, and seven, and five years each for counts two, four, six, and eight, all without the option of a fine. This means Omomoh will serve a total of five years, starting from 3 February.
Justice Ekwo strongly condemned Omomoh’s actions, calling her a “barefaced liar, a crooked and dishonest human being,” and noting her denial of her voluntarily given statement to the police as further evidence of her manipulative nature as a trafficker.
“The evidence also exposes her as being in the business of procuring young vulnerable women like Miss Cynthia Omoieke for prostitution abroad,” the judge stated.
The judge ordered Omomoh’s conviction on all counts, stating, “People like the defendant must be removed from society for good.” He formally convicted her on all eight counts.
In the case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/121/2019, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) named Omomoh as the sole defendant. The IGP’s amended charge, dated 24 October 2022, accuses Omomoh and the now-fugitive Mrs. Oyomiya Lamidi of conspiring in Lagos in 2011 to recruit and transport Miss Cynthia Loveth Ese Omoieke to Italy via the United Kingdom. This was allegedly achieved through deception and exploitation of Ms Omoieke’s vulnerability, an act punishable under Section 27 of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration (TPPEA) Act, 2015.
Count five further alleges that Omomoh and Mrs. Lamidi facilitated Ms Omoieke’s travel to Italy via the UK in 2011, promoting prostitution, also a violation of Section 27 of the TPPEA Act.
Omomoh pleaded not guilty to all charges. The prosecution presented two witnesses in support of its case.
