Barber docked for peeping at female neighbour in bathroom

A 36-year-old barber, Azeez Adewale, charged with peeping at his female neighbour while bathing in the bathroom, was arraigned on Wednesday in Lagos. Adewale, who resides at No. 23, Arowojobe St., Lagos, is being tried for breach of peace and assault at an Oshodi Magistrates’ Court. The prosecutor, Cpl. Kehinde Olatunde, told the court that the accused committed the offences on May 17 at his residence. He said that the accused was peeping at his neighbour, one Miss Victoria Emmanuel, in the bathroom while taking her bath.

“The accused was secretly looking at the complainant when she was bathing,” he said. Olatunde said that the accused was sitting at the passage when the complainant passed with a bucket of water to bath. “The accused sneaked and followed her behind, he went to the back of the bathroom where there is a small hole, stood there and was peeping at her while she bathed,” he said.

The prosecutor said that when the complainant noticed an eyeball watching her, she poured soap water on the eye. “While she was bathing, she sighted an eye looking at her through a small hole in the bathroom and she poured soap water on the eye. “The accused forcefully opened the bathroom door, descended on the complainant by punching her severally on her face, and she quickly shouted for help and neighbours came to her rescue,” Olatunde said.

He said that before that day, the accused had on two different occasions went to knock on the complainant’s door at 12 midnight asking her to open her door that he wanted to deliver a message. “The accused knocked the complainant’s door at midnight begging her to allow him enter that her friend sent him to her, the complainant always ignored him, telling him to wait for day to break,” he said.

The offences, Olatunde said, contravened sections 166 and 171 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. Section 171 prescribes a three-year jail term as penalty for offenders. The accused pleaded innocence of the offences and was granted bail in the sum of N50, 000 with one surety in like sum. The Magistrate, Mr Akeem Fashola, adjourned the case to June 8 for mention.