– Jury Unanimously Convicts Group of 77 Coordinator in Nimba for Rape
BY: Shallon S. Gonlor
NIMBA COUNTY – Amos T. Gbawon, the 52-year-old coordinator of the D77 Group for persons with disabilities in Nimba County, has been convicted of the statutory rape of a one-year-old, eleven-month-old girl. The verdict was delivered on Tuesday, September 23, 2025, by a majority jury decision at the Sexual Offenses Division Court in Sanniquellie City.
The jury, comprising ten out of twelve members, reached the guilty verdict after a week-long trial that began on September 16. The case centered on horrific allegations of abuse that occurred on May 30, 2025.
Gbawon, who is physically disabled, had pleaded not guilty to a ten-count indictment filed by the Ministry of Justice on September 8. The indictment detailed how the defendant “forcibly removed the child survivor’s clothes and sexually abused her with his penis, finger, and a foreign or blunt object” in his room at a disability center in Sanniquellie.
According to the prosecution, Gbawon, acting with “criminal minds and intent,” lured the toddler into his bedroom under the pretense of having her help him count cash. He then violently penetrated the child.
A key piece of evidence presented was the medical report from the G. W. Hawley Hospital in Sanniquellie. The report, compiled by a Sexual Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) examiner, stated that the victim’s hymen was not intact and that penetration had occurred, though the specific cause was listed as “unknown.”
In his defense, Gbawon claimed the allegations were false. He testified that he often cared for the child in a grandfatherly manner and could not have committed the act because he was impotent.
The defendant asserted that multiple hernia surgeries had rendered him unable to engage in sexual activity, a condition for which he claimed a doctor had advised him to abstain for three years.
To support this claim, Gbawon’s legal counsel filed motions to subpoena his medical records from G.W. Hawley Hospital and to order an independent examination of the victim at Ganta Methodist Hospital. The court granted both motions.
However, the medical testimony that followed ultimately undermined his defense. Representatives from the medical institutions testified that while penetration had occurred, a simple hernia operation could not cause impotency.
The jury’s guilty verdict underscores the court’s rejection of the defendant’s impotence claim and its acceptance of the prosecution’s evidence.
Following the announcement of the verdict, the defendant’s counsel immediately announced an intention to appeal, stating they would “take advantage of the law controlling.”
Due to the severity of the crime—involving a victim far below the age of consent—Gbawon now faces the possibility of a lengthy prison sentence, potentially spanning decades. The age of the victim and the significant age gap are factors likely to aggravate the sentence.
Although statutory rape is a strict liability crime that does not require proof of force, the prosecution’s argument of violent penetration could lead to a harsher penalty.
Resident Circuit Resident, Musa S. Sidibey of the Sexual Offenses Division Court at the 8th Judicial Circuit in Sanniquellie, Nimba County has scheduled the sentencing for October 1, 2025. The court has ordered a pre-sentence investigation report to be compiled to inform the final judgment, which will determine the fate of the convicted disability community leader.
