A 61-year old legal practitioner, Barr. Israel Mbaebie, has landed in trouble in Lagos State for allegedly employing a 16-year old girl as office secretary in his chamber, engaging her in sex romp and eventually impregnated her.
P.M.EXPRESS reports that Barr. Mbaebie has been arrested and charged over his alleged conduct.
The incident happened in 2023 at Karimu Street, Coker – Orile, Lagos, where the chamber is located and the victim was employed as an office secretary.
The victim, who is now 18, has already been delivered of the baby in 2024. The Police found the lawyer culpable over his conduct by employing an under aged girl, having unlawful sexual intercourse and impregnating her.
According to the Police, the lawyer employed the victim as an office secretary and started engaging her in unlawful sex, which eventually led to pregnancy.
The victim later informed her parents that it was actually the lawyer who employed her as secretary that impregnated her due to constant sex he was having with her.
The matter was then reported to the Police in the area. He was arrested and transferred to the Gender Section of the State Command for interrogation over his alleged conduct.
After interrogation, the Police found him culpable and consequently charged him before the Ogba Magistrate Court for the alleged offence which attracts several years of imprisonment.
The charge read:
“That you, Barr. Israel Mbaebie ‘m’, sometime in the year 2023 at No. 5 Karimu Street, Coker – Orile, Lagos, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did defile one Michelle Chinaza Michael ‘f 16years old then, who is now 18years, who worked as a secretary in your chamber by having unlawful sexual intercourse with her and got her pregnant, and she was delivered of a baby last year 2024 and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria 2015.”
The Court did not take his plea following a motion moved by the prosecutor, Inspector Lucky Ihiehie, asking the Court to give a date and refer the matter to the DPP for legal advice.
The Presiding Magistrate, Mrs. M.O. Tanimola, ordered his remand in custody at the correctional center at Kirikiri town, pending the outcome of the DPP’s advice and directed the prosecutor to duplicate the file and send it to the DPP.
The matter was adjourned for mention for the report of the DPP’s advice to be available, which will determine if the matter will be transferred to the High Court or not over jurisdiction.