By: Shallon S. Gonlor
NIMBA COUNTY – A 23-year-old man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping a 16-year-old girl. The specialized Sexual Offenses Court in Sanniquellie delivered the sentence on Tuesday, December 31, 2024.
Resident Circuit Judge Musa S. Sidibey announced the ruling after a jury found Emmanuel Boe guilty last week. The crime occurred on June 28, 2024, in the Old Car Garage Community of Ganta City.
The Grand Jury for Nimba County indicted Boe on August 30, 2024, for his role in a gang rape involving multiple suspects. According to the indictment, Boe and others lured the victim under the pretense of helping her find her way back to Saclepea City after her friend went missing.
For two days, the group sexually assaulted the girl, leaving her unconscious and in need of medical attention. She was later treated at the Ganta United Methodist Hospital.
During the investigation, Boe admitted to seeing the victim but denied any sexual contact, claiming his brother, Alex, was the one who assaulted her. The court’s decision reflects a commitment to holding offenders accountable for such heinous crimes.
Based on the indictment filed, a writ of arrest was ordered and served on defendant Emmanuel Boe thereby bringing him under the court’s jurisdiction while others remain at-large.
After the defendant, Emmanuel Boe was arraigned and pled not guilty to the indictment on November 25, 2024, the Public Defense Office representing the defendant requested a severance trial under section 16.10 of the Criminal Procedure Law, which was granted by the court.
During the trial proceedings, after the prosecution had rested with its second witness on December 5, 2024, the defendant brought to the attention of the court his desire to retain a counsel of his choice, requesting a ten-day continuance on December 18, 2024.
The court, in granting the defendant’s request said “The request being a matter of law was granted. “It is the law in this jurisdiction that in all criminal cases before the circuit court, the defendant is entitled to a legal counsel of his choice. It is also the law that where it is shown to the satisfaction of the court that the defendant is unable to hire a legal counsel of his choice, the court appoints a public defense lawyer to represent the interest of the defendant. It is however provided that “…the assignment of defense counsel shall not deprive the accused of the right to engage other legal counsel in substitution at any stage of the proceedings”. Criminal Procedure Law section 2.2 subsection 4.
In the trial case, the Public Defense Office of Nimba County through Counsellor Tarlo N. Wehyee, by virtue of his assignment, initially represented the defendant when the trial resumed. The production of evidence commenced, including the prosecution resting with its first and second witnesses. At the stage of the proceedings, the defendant requested a continuance to allow him to retain a lawyer of his choice in person of Attorney-At-Law Theophilus T. Gbeadah.
At the close of evidence, both the prosecution and defendant’s counsels gave notice to the court that they rested with the production of evidence, submitting each, side of the case to the jury for final determination.
The trial of the case in court started on November 25, 2024, and the final argument was heard Saturday, December 21, 2024, with a jury unanimous guilty verdict returned after careful consideration of the evidence adduced during the trial of said case, reviewing of arguments from both the prosecution and defense as well as making their determination in the deliberation room.
During the trial that lasted for weeks, the prosecution took the witness stand and paraded 5 witnesses, including the victim identified as G.H., followed by four other witnesses who testified and rested with the production of evidence on December 19. The special court SGBV Prosecutor, Attorney-At-Law, Joseph Suah appeared for the Ministry of Justice.
For his part, the defendant’s counsel, Atty. Theophilus T. Gbeadah examined two witnesses who testified for and on behalf of the defendant. The defense’s two witnesses included Wuo Koreolovor, the owner of the house, the crime scene, and grandfather of the defendant, and Queta Boe, the mother of the defendant. The defendant himself did not testify.
In the ruling held Tuesday, the Resident Judge of the Specialized Sexual Offenses Court at the Eighth Judiciary Circuit Court in Sanniquellie brought down a guilty verdict and sentenced Emmanuel Boe to a 20-year jail sentence.
Judge Sidibey stated that the convict, Emmanuel Boe, 23, who is believed to be an adult was supposed to be the child’s whistle-blower, but jointly committed a crime of gang rape that warranted no mercy.
He said the commission of the crime of Gang Rape has graded a felony of the first degree within section 14.70(2) of the Penal Law as amended came into force after January 17, 2006, proscribing gang rape as an offense of first-degree.
“Gang Rape: A person has committed Gang Rape, a first-degree felony if he or she purposely promotes or facilitated rape or agrees with one or more persons to engage in or cause the performance of conduct which constitutes rape” Judge Sidibey emphasized.
According to him, unlike other felonies, the facilitation of gang rape carries the same grade as a first-degree felony as stated by law writers indicating it as an element which if a person commits, he or she is guilty of the crime of gang rape.
Judge Sidibey further said that the defendant’s admission to police amounts to aiding to commit gang rape.
According to the court, convict Emmanuel Boe failed to make an effort to prevent the commission of the crime against the victim, quoting provisions of the Law as his legal reliance.
Referencing Penal Law Revised Code 26:10.1, Judge Sidibey said the statute makes it an offense for a person to facilitate or promote rape. Noting that a person believed to probably render aid to someone who intends to commit a crime has engaged in conduct that provides such person with an opportunity for the commission, which aids such person to commit a felony.
The court’s final ruling stressed that the court had no alternative but to insist upon strict compliance with the law as it was passed.
Court’s Final Ruling and Sentencing Impart:
“Even though the trier of facts found the defendant not guilty for the second part of the offense, that is, he agreed with one or more persons to engage in conduct that constitutes rape. They found the defendant unanimously guilty of the first part of the offense, that is, he facilitated or engaged in conduct that provided Alex (defendant at large) with means or opportunity for the commission of the crime of gang rape. He aided Alex to commit rape by leaving the room for Alex to have sexual intercourse with the victim repeatedly and by his failure to report the crime until the victim was discovered unconscious in his room. The Supreme Court of Liberia has held that “…proof establishing any part of the indictment does not exonerate the defendant from conviction.”
“This court gathers from the precedent cases that the establishment of the fact that the defendant’s conduct facilitated the commission of raping the victim constitutes proof of the crime alleged in the indictment.
Wherefore and given the foregoing, the unanimous guilty verdict of the jury is affirmed, and the defendant is hereby adjudged guilty of gang rape. The defendant is hereby sentenced to a term of twenty years imprisonment”.
The Sexual Offenses Division Court’s final judgment found Emmanuel Boe guilty of the crime of gang rape, which the prosecution accused him of.
The prosecution case was that the youthful man with criminal intention, took advantage of the manor and sexually abused her.
The convict is expected to spend his 20 years imprisonment at the Sanniquellie Central Prison in Nimba County. He received his guilty verdict during the court’s final ruling and sentencing, but his lawyer filed an appeal to the higher court.
