7 Crimes In Nigeria That Can Send You To Jail

                                                                               
With the high rate of crime happening in Nigeria and the increase in Police Harrassment, We need to understand the crimes that can land you in the Police nest.

Below are few of the crimes you need to avoid in Nigeria.

Abduction: This is the action of forcibly taking someone away against their will. Abduction can also be referred to as kidnapping as the case maybe. When it comes to kidnapping, Punishments may be different due to the region or state. Some states might sentence the criminal to a couple of years in prison, and some up to life in prison. If you are caught, charged and found guilty of a kidnapping offense, you should strive to get a good lawyer which might reduce your jail terms. In other words kidnapping should be a no no for you.

Assault: Before we go into the dangers of commiting an assault, lets look at the meaning of assault according to the dictionary "Assault- a violent onset or attack with physical means such as, blows, weapons etc". Assault penalties are different, depending on the current situation and the region, an assault punishment given in the northern region of Nigeria is different from the one given in Eastern Nigeria. But jail terms and punishments for assault are usually very serious because assault is considered a violent crime and punishable by the law.

It is usually associated with physical violence e.g raising your hand in a threatening manner, or by striking at your victim and missing him/her. However, assault charges can actually contain much more than just fights or physical attacks. Some regions in Nigeria locally define assault as any unwanted touching that a you knew the victim  would find offensive or annoying. Basic assault that involve small injuries or threats are usually punished as minor  offenses and can lead to paying of fine. The  jail term for an assault offense is up to a year.

Attempted Suicide: Life, as they say, is a gift from God  and can be given and taken only by him. Earlier this year, an issue arose in Nigeria where a lady was charged to court for attempted suicide. But the question here is, is it a crime to take one own life? It as been said to have been a crime when a suicide attempt is failed. Since no penalty is given there, the penalty for failed suicide is up to two years in prison or a fine, in some cases both.

Defilement: This is one crime you really don't want to involve yourself into. Before we go into details lets talk about the word "Defile", Defile as the word implies is to make something dirty. Relating it to Humans, Defilement simply means any sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 18 years old, whether or not the child permission.

Defilement is a national crime and the penalties is of high terms. Penalties differs depending on the age of the victim. Defilement of an  11 years old child and below carries a sentence of life imprisonment, Defilement of a child between the ages of 12 to 15 carries a sentence of 20 years jail time.Defilement of a child between 16 to 18 years old carries a minimum sentence of 15 years imprisonment. In some regions in Nigeria, a person who commits an offence of defilement with a child of 11 years or less, upon being found guilty shall be sentenced to life in imprisonment.

Impersonation: I guess this is not a new word in Nigeria, we have been having reports coming from the Nigeria Police about civilians going about pretending to be in the Police force extorting money from the general public.
I guess is time to find out the meaning of Impersonation. Impersonation as the word implies simply means "To pretend to be (a different person), to assume the identity of another person". Impersonation is of different phases, today we will find out these phases.A person commits the crime of impersonation if he or she is found guilty of the following below...

(a) To pretend to be someone else  with the intention of gaining or harming the victim etc.

(b) When he/she Pretends to be a representative of an organization with the intention of possessing something or gaining some for selfish reasons.

(c) Claims on any profession, business, or any other career occupation without a license, certificate, or other authorization required by law. e.g calling yourself a doctor when you are not.

Any person with  an intention to defraud anybody, using fake identity, presenting himself to be some other person, living or dead, is guilty of a criminal offense and is liable to three years jail term. For example, a Policeman who gives his official identity card to a civilian to use for an unknown selfish reasons, hereby impersonating the Police Officer is also guilty of the above offence.

Murder: I still don't see why people will kill themselves for no reason, no matter the situation or act, you have no right to take someone else life. Murder according to dictionary "An act of deliberate killing of another being, especially a human". The penalty of murder is death. Under the Federal Robbery and Firearms Act, applicable in the Federal Capital Territory, death sentences can be carried out by firing squad or by hanging the criminal depending on the region, in most cases the decision is left for the  Governor.

Rape: Rape is a word for sexual assault. This is one of the worst crimes there is and highly punishable by law. There aren't few words more powerful than the word "Rape" which is a horrifying crime. To rape someone is to forcefully have sex with them. Rape is punished by a maximum of 20Years jail term. In some situations of rape, whereby the victim is below the age of 15, such rape case is punished by a maximum of thirty years jail term' and life imprisonment where it caused the death of the victim.