Court remands 2 suspects over illegal possession of firearms, robbery

Two men have been remanded in prison custody over alleged possession of firearms and robbing a pedestrian of her phones and cash worth N680,705.

The defendants, Gideon Eze, 35, and John Akpan, 30, whose residential addresses were not given, were arraigned by the police on a three-count charge of conspiracy, armed robbery and possession of firearms.

Magistrate Mrs F. F. George, sitting at an Igbosere magistrates court, Lagos, who remanded the defendants, ordered that the case file be

consolidated with another case file bearing Emeka Iheanacho, 20 and Onyekachi Nwojo, 27 as defendants and sent to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) office for legal advice.

In the second case file, Iheanacho and Nwojo had been arraigned since December 27, 2018, for the same offences.

The magistrate said since the four defendants were standing trial for allegedly committing the same offence in the same place and time, their case files should be consolidated.

She adjourned the case until April 16, 2019 pending the advice of the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecution.

The prosecutor, Sergeant Godwin Awase, told the court that the defendants committed the alleged offences on December 5, 2018, at 10.00a.m. at Muritala Odofin Plaza, Agungi, Lekki, Lagos.

Awase said that the men, armed with a locally made pistol, forcefully dispossessed one Ms Nosariere Igiehon of her three Iphones worth N600,000, a handbag containing cash of N80,705 and other personal items.

The plea of the defendants was not taken.