The jury began its deliberations Tuesday afternoon and reached its verdict Wednesday. State Superior Court Judge Raymond A. Reddin read the verdict to an emotionless Ayinde, according to witnesses. The 52-year-old was convicted on multiple counts of aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault, lewdness, child endangerment, aggravated criminal sexual contact and criminal sexual contact.
Most of the testimony was offered by his daughter, and after hearing her testimony, the jury came to a unanimous verdict. The daughter, now 23, testified that her father often beat her, her mother and siblings in front of each other. She also stated under oath that Ayinde told her he was Christ, the prophet, and that they were creating their own race.
The predator faces at least 40 years in prison, and possibly more than 100 years if convicted of all the charges to be brought against him in future trials in which he is charged with raping and impregnating four other daughters. Currently he is being held in the Passaic County Jail on $1 million bond until sentencing on Jan. 7.
Ayinde, was arrested in July 2006. He describes himself as a filmmaker and entrepreneur and also went by the name of Eric McGill. The alleged assaults were committed from 1985 through 2002 in Paterson, East Orange, Orange and Eatontown. DNA evidence has confirmed that he is the father of the child in this first case of five criminal sexual contact cases.
–torrance stephens, ph.d.
