A Lagos State Chief Magistrates’ Court sitting in Ebute-Metta area of the state on Monday extended till June 10, its remand order against the policeman, Olalekan Ogunyemi who allegedly fired the gunshot that killed Kolade Johnson, a resident of the state. Magistrate Ayo Salawu gave the order that the dismissed policeman should remain behind bars because the Office of the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is yet to send the legal advice on the case to court.
With this decision Ogunyemi, who was first brought before the court on April 6, on a one-count charge of murder will now stay in custody for another 35 days after spending 30 days in Ikoyi Prisons. But unlike when he was first arraigned, Ogunyemi was not in court yesterday and no reason was given by the police for his absence The prosecuting police officer, Inspector Kehinde Olatunde had told the court that the defendant allegedly committed the offence on March 31, at about 5:10pm, at Onipetesi Estate, Idi-Mangoro, Lagos.
Olatunde also claimed that Ogunyemi, who served in the Anti-Cultism Unit of the Lagos State Police Command, shot Johnson, a 36-year-old father of one, to death, with his Ak47 rifle. The offence, the prosecutor maintained is contrary to Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015. The plea of the defendant was not taken by the court, because magistrates’ court have no jurisdiction to try a charge of murder.
But the defendant’s counsel, Sola Adeyemi, opposed the remand request. Adeyemi urged the court to instead remand the defendant for the next 14 days. In a bench ruling, Magistrate Salawu upheld the prosecutor’s application and adjourned till yesterday for the DPP’s advice.
No comments:
Post a Comment