2 policemen to hang over Apo 6 killings
Chief Judge of the FCT High, Justice Ishaq Bello yesterday sentenced two policemen to death by hanging for the killing of two auto-spare parts dealers at Apo area of Abuja in 2005.
The officers sentenced are Emmanuel Baba and Ezekiel Acheneje (4th and 5th defendants) who admitted in their confessional statements that they shot and killed Ifeanyi Ozo and Augustina Arebun.
Justice Bello held that Baba and Acheneje confessed to using an AK47 to shoot the deceased they were meant to take to the hospital for treatment on the bullet wounds they sustained when their car was fired at by police officers at a checkpoint. He held that their retraction of the statements while giving oral evidence was an afterthought and meant only to mislead.
“Nothing shows the two victims did anything to constitute a threat to the 4th and 5th defendants even though evidence showed the boy attempted to escape but was found by members of the public who handed him over to 4th and 5th defendants. The 4th defendant shot the boy while the 5th defendant shot the girl.
“This is a case of impunity of the highest order. The instances of extrajudicial killings by Police are too many”, the judge held.
The judge held that no one can hide under directions by the state or a superior officer to commit a crime. He held that it was “folly” for the convicts to think they could be “discharged on the ground of ‘I am directed’.”
He said the prosecution has proven its case against the 4th and 5th defendants beyond reasonable doubts and they are therefore convicted of culpable homicide and sentenced to death under Section 221 of the Penal Code.
The judge discharged and acquitted former Deputy Commissioner of Police, Danjuma Ibrahim, Nicholas Zacharia, and Sadiq Salami (the 1st, 3rd and 6th defendants) of all the counts related to them in the charge.
The judge held that police investigation was unable to link them with the alleged crimes. “The investigation of the case left so much to be desired”, he said.
He held that the ballistician report (Exhibits 15 &15a) showed that the service pistol of Ibrahim was not used. He said the question then was who used the AK47 in firing at the victims at the police checkpoint at Gimbiya Street, Area 11, Abuja on 08/06/2005 that instantly killed four of the victims.
The judge held that the investigating officer (PW10) testified that they were not given opportunity to investigate so it was difficult to prove who killed who.
The office of the Attorney-General of the Federation had in a nine-count charge accused the police officers of killing Ifeanyi Ozo, Chinedu Meniru, Isaac Ekene, Paulinus Ogbonna, Anthony Nwokike and Augustina Arebun. The deceased, aged between 21 years and 25 years, were returning from a night party in 2005 when they were killed.