Fagbemi's Absence Stalls Trial of Alleged Kidnappers, Killers of Imo Monarch, Njoku

Judge threatens to strike out case

The absence of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, yesterday, stalled the trial of four persons alleged to have kidnapped and killed the traditional ruler of Amanze-Obowo Autonomous Community in Imo State, Eze Basil Njoku.

But the trial judge, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court,

Abuja, has threatened to strike out the terrorism charge brought against the four defendants.

The threat was occasioned by the absence of the prosecution led by the AGF.

Although the four defendants were billed for arraignment by9.am, the judge was forced to shift it till noon due to the non-appearance of the AGF or his representatives in court.

The four defendants were Jude

Iheme, Chika Madukwe, Nwokorie Chidiebere Ejike and Victor Nwajuiba Obumneke.

The three counts earlier slammed against them had been increased to five in the amended charge.

By noon, when the arraignment was to hold, neither the AGF nor his representative appeared in court without any information or communication to the court.

The situation prompted the judge to invite lawyers to the defendants into her chambers, where an adjournment of April 30th was fixed.

Although the lead counsel to the defendants, Solomon Akume, SAN, had applied for dismissal of the terrorism charge against the defendants, Justice Nyako opted to give the AGF another chance to lead a diligent prosecution

The judge, however, held that if the AGF or his representatives failed to appear in court on the next adjourned date, the court might have no option than to strike out the charge against the defendants for want of diligent prosecution.

At the last trial on March 20, the AGF represented by David Kaswe, a lawyer from the Federal Ministry of Justice, had taken over the prosecution of the defendants from the Inspector General of Police IGP, who first initiated the trial of the defendants.

Kaswe had told the judge that the AGF invoked Section 174 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 105 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) to assume trial of the defendants.

The AGF's office at the last adjourned date told the court that the IGP had been directed to make the case file available to his office.

However at today's proceedings, neither the AGF and David Kwase, nor Simon Lough, SAN, who was prosecuting the trial for the Inspector General of Police were in court, despite been served with hearing notice.

Meanwhile Justice Nyako has ordered that fresh hearing notice for April 30th arraignment of the four defendants be served on the AGF.

Iheme, 52 years of Amagwu Amanze Obowo Local Government Area of Imo and Madukwe, 42 years of Ndi-Uche Etiti Omuimo Local Government Area, also of Imo State, were said to have killed the traditional ruler on December 17, 2022.

The defendants were accused of killing the monarch while coming from the Federal Medical Center, Umuahia, after kidnapping and collecting a ransom of N4M cash from his family.

In the charge marked FHC/ABJ/ CR/575/2024, Iheme and Madukwe alongside others said to be at large were alleged to have conspired to commit felony to wit, acts of terrorism contrary to section 26 of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act 2022.