A 39-year-old, Osita Nwadiobi, who
breathed an air of freedom on Thursday in
Lagos after five years in prison custody, said
his incarceration had saved his life.
“Imprisonment saved my life, I am happy
that I have been in prison custody since
2011.
“If not for the prison I would have died
because I was moving with `wrong people’.
“I would have ended up as a `certified’
armed robber and be killed,’’ Nwadiobi, a
robbery suspect, told the News Agency of
Nigeria (NAN).
Nwadiobi had been detained without trial
since 2011 for alleged robbery.
The suspect and 15 other inmates were
pardoned and released by the Chief Judge of
Lagos State, Justice Oluwafunmilayo Atilade,
on Thursday during a visit to Ikoyi Prisons.
The release is pursuant to the provisions of
Section 1(1) of the Criminal Justice Release
from Custody (Special Provisions) Act 2007,
Laws of the Federation.
Another inmate, 56-year-old Dauda Adio, the
oldest among the freed inmates, also told
NAN that he had been imprisoned for five
years without trial over alleged stealing.
He said:“I am very happy to be freed today
as I have been in prison since 2010 for
alleged stealing.’’
“I am going straight to my village in Oyo; I
am no longer staying in Lagos as staying in
Lagos has put me into trouble.’’
The chief judge said the release of the
inmates was aimed at reducing
overcrowding at the prison.
“It is paramount in order to alleviate the
suffering of inmates.
“There is a recurring problem of awaiting-
trial detainees in our prisons.
“To tackle this problem, I will perform the
statutory right conferred upon me to release
inmates who have spent unreasonable time
in custody without trial,’’ Atilade said. (NAN)


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