Sugabelly vindicated as court dismisses Mustapha Audu's case against her ~ Crown Gist

Sugabelly vindicated as court dismisses Mustapha Audu's case against her

Ten years ago, the name Sugabelly was trending on Twitter after she accused the sons of two powerful Nigerian men of rape. A US court has now vindicated her and ruled in her favour.Sugabelly, whose real name is Lotanna Igwe Odunze, said she was raped at the age of 17 by men who were at least 10 years older than her. One of the men named as her rapist is Mustapha Audu, son of former Kogi state Governor, Abubakar Audu. The second is the son of an Admiral who led the military.Because of the power the young men wield, they tried to bully Sugabelly into silence. Social media users also shamed Sugabelly and accused her of being a liar. Some accused her of being a woman without morals. Only a few defended her. In June 2017, Mustapha Audu filed a suit in the courts in Washington DC, USA, against Sugabelly for libel because she called him a rapist. Mustapha Audu claimed the allegations of rape were false. He asked for damages, jury trial & injunctions. Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, a renowned human rights lawyer, revealed that Sugabelly has now been vindicated in the case. He said "once issues were joined, Mustapha Audu's case began to unravel. Earlier this year, the court dismissed his case with prejudice, requiring him to pay all the costs of Sugabelly."Read Prof. Odinkalu's tweets below.