Two suspects arrested over the invasion of the home of Mary
Odili, retired supreme court justice, have been declared missing from the Kuje
correctional centre in Abuja.
Matthew Omosun, the prosecution lawyer, announced the development
on Wednesday during the proceedings at the federal high court in Abuja
BACKGROUND
In October 2021, security operatives invaded Odili’s
residence in Abuja to enforce a search warrant issued by a magistrate court
over the allegation of illegal activities at the house.
Documents, however, revealed that the warrant presented by
the security operatives bore a wrong address.
In November 2021, the police paraded suspects arrested in
connection with the invasion.
On December 15, 2021, the federal government arraigned the
suspects on an 18-count charge bordering on conspiracy to commit felony and
forgery of court documents.
On the day of arraignment, the court granted bail to 12 out
the 15 suspects.
The three others were later granted bail, but the court
ordered that they remain in custody at the Kuje correctional centre until they
perfected their bail terms.
Those arraigned included Adjodo F. Lawrence, Michael
Diete-Spiff, Alex Onyekuru, Bayero Lawal, Igwe Ernest, Aliyu Umar Ibrahim,
Maimuna Maishanu, Ayodele Akindipe and Yusuf Adaiu.
Others are Bashir Musa, Stanley Nkwazema, Shehu Jibo,
Abdulahi Adamu, Mohammed Yahaya, and Abdulahi Usman.
On July 5, 2022, gunmen attacked the Kuje correctional
centre and freed over 500 inmates, including suspected members of Boko Haram.
At resumption of trial on July 19, Usman Jibrin, counsel to
three of the defendants, told Nkeonye Maha, the trial judge, that his clients —
Aliyu Umar Ibrahim, Shehu Jibo, and Abdulahi Adamu — are victims of the Kuje
attack.
The trial judge then directed the prosecution team to
investigate the matter and report back on November 16.
‘COURT ORDERS PRISON
AUTHORITIES TO PRODUCE SUSPECT’
According to NAN, during Wednesday’s proceedings, Omosun,
the prosecution lawyer, told the court that his office wrote to the prison
authorities concerning the three aforementioned defendants.
While reading the response of the Nigerian Correctional
Service (NCoS) in court, Omosun said the authorities disclosed that Jibo and
Adamu are at large.
Jibrin, lawyer to the defendants, however, expressed concern
that one of his clients — Aliyu Umar Ibrahim, who is the sixth defendant — was
not in court despite the position of the NCoS that he was not at large.
He asked the court to order the prison authorities to
produce Ibrahim on the next adjourned date.
Omosun, however, said the three defendants can be tried in
absentia based on the provisions of section 421 of the Administration of
Criminal Justice Act, 2015.
The judge adjourned the matter until February 16, 2023, for
continuation of trial, and ordered the NCoS to produce Ibrahim in court on the
next adjourned date.
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