The Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency has notified the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons of the alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl by controversial artiste Darlington Okoye, aka Speed Darlington.
The singer sparked public outrage on Tuesday, after an Instagram Live session, during which he mocked hotel workers who were made to clean a blood-stained bedsheet.
LDSVA said it was “aware of the disturbing video currently circulating online, in which a popular entertainer allegedly admits to engaging in unlawful sexual activity with a minor”.
The agency, in a statement on Tuesday, noted that while Speed Darlington did not specify the location of the incident during the Instagram Live session, “we must clarify that the DSVA’s jurisdiction is limited to Lagos State”.
“In view of the above, and in line with our commitment to justice, we have escalated the situation to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP),” the agency added.
Section 31 of the Child Rights Act (2003) provides that “(1) No person shall have sexual intercourse with a child. (2)A person who contravenes the provision of subsection (1) of this section commits an offence of rape and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for life. (2) Where a person is charged with an offence under this section, it is immaterial that: the offender believed the person to be of or above the age of eighteen years, or the sexual intercourse was with the consent of the child.”