Pathologist faults forensic report on alleged rape survivor

Ladapo Kolade

A forensic pathologist and clinical forensic physician, Dr. Uwom Eze, has flawed the medical examination presented by Dr Oyebimpe Akinbunmi against the medical director, Olufemi Olaleye, charged with the defilement of his 16-year-old wife’s niece.

Eze is the chief consultant a clinical forensic and head of Forensic Medicine Unit, Department of Pathology, University College Hospital, (UCH), Ibadan.

The forensic pathologist is the first defence witness.

He was led in evidence by Mr Olusegun Fabunmi, SAN, before an Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court.

He said he received a letter from Olufab Law Firm on March 25 to carry out a medical review on the medical report from Mirabel Medical Centre, (a sexual assault referral centre) presented by Akinwumi to the court.

Eze told the court that the medical report presented by Akinbunmi did not meet the standard format in accordance with the forensic evaluation of sexual assault as there was need for a qualified personnel to handle such medical examination.

He said that in the medical certificate he reviewed, the medical qualification of the doctor that carried out the report was not there.

“There was no reference whether the hepatitis B, C and HIV test was carried out which was key to the medical report. The doctor did not observe any preexisting or abnormalities in the genital of the survivor.

“There was no documentation on the significance of the medical report. The significance of the medical examination was missing.

“There was no temporal profile that the survivor was defiled four times as there was no indication whether the oral sex took place in the four alleged sexual penetration”.

He also said that there was no mention whatsoever about the temporal profile as pill allegation is a very serious one. Some questions such as how many pills, what colour was given to her. the doctor did not also document if the pill was given to her in all the four rounds of sexual escapade the survivor allegedly had with he defendant.

The witness further told the court that the profoma was that of an adult and not of a child, adding that the normal procedure was that the medical report must be documented.

The specialist said that he observed that the survivor was 18 years.

“We have to treat such age as adult. the doctor who wrote this report was very clear about this report that there was ‘repeated forceful blunt penetration’ as a medical expert.

”I looked through the report to see the significance of the medical certificate but there was no evidence documented as to show that there was bruises on the survivor’s vagina.

“There was no documentation of swab from the mouth of the survivor that could make us establish contact with the alleged penetration and there was no reason why the DNA test was not carried out.

“The profoma is deficient and does not conform with World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines on clinical examination of survivor of sexual assault.

“The WHO states that all the parts of the body must be included from mouth, breast, tigh and other parts of the body must be documented in the medical certificate.

“The golden time for presentation is the first 72 hours because when penetrative sex is alleged, what a qualified proforma will ask if there was ejaculation or not to ascertain if the clothe of the survivor can be used for examination or not,” he said.

While being cross-examined by the state lead counsel, Mr Babjide Boye, the medical examiner told the court he did not charge for the consulting service, adding that he reviewed the case due to public interest .

He said that he was not opportuned to see the survivor and does not have information on the competence of the doctor.

Another witness, a friend of the defendant for forty years, Mr Oladende Bakare, told the court that Olaleye was not capable of committing the alleged crime.

Bakare said that he had been managing the defendant’s clinic while he was abroad and that Oluremi called him sometimes in 2021 that the defendant was in the station.

“When Remi (defendant’s wife) told me Femi was arrested for sexually assault, I told her it was not possible because Femi had stayed in my house before and i have two daughters. In fact, my second daughter did her NYSC at his clinic and she never mentioned she was molested by my friend,” he said.

The wife of the defendant, Mrs Aderemi Fagbemi-Olaleye, on Dec. 19, 2022, had told the court that her husband was diagnosed with sex addiction.

A forensic expert at the Mirabel Centre, Lagos, Mrs Oyebimpe Akinbunmi, and Insp Esther Igbineweka testified against the medical director on Jan. 4.

The alleged offences violated Sections 137 and 261 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

Justice Ramon Oshodi adjourned the case until April 26 for the continuation of trial. .