Justice Sedoten Ogunsanya of the Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja yesterday sentenced a Police Corporal, Abang Okon to six years imprisonment for the unlawful killing of one Olalekan Ajayi.

Okon, who had earlier pleaded not guilty to the one-count charge brought against him by the Lagos State government, changed his plea following a plea bargain arrangement with the government.

The convict, who committed the offence on April 1, was accused of firing a gunshot that killed Olalekan at the Ladeja area of Ikorodu in Lagos State.

At the resumed hearing of the matter on yesterday, the state prosecutor, Adebayo Haroun, informed the court of the plea bargain arrangement between the convict and the state.

Haroun urged the court to approve the guilty plea as involuntary manslaughter.

However, after reviewing the agreement, Justice Ogunsanya refused to adopt it wholesale.

The judge noted, “The defendant having shown remorse for his actions on the 28th August, 2013 along Ladega Junction, Ikorodu, Lagos by negligently firing a bullet at one Olalekan Ajayi which resulted in his death hereby pleads guilty to the offence of involuntary manslaughter contrary to section 222 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

“The defendant is hereby sentenced to six years imprisonment to take effect from the date of his remand in prison custody”.

She, however, turned down a part of the plea bargain which had recommended that the defendant should serve a six-hour community service in the nature of environmental sanitation as part of the punishment for his crime.

The judge also refused to adopt the part of the bargain which recommended that the defendant should be responsible for paying the school fees of one of the deceased’s children from primary to secondary school.

source: http://leadership.ng/news/448967/killer-cop-court-jails-policeman-for-manslaughter

issorite...

.which kind of useless judgement is this one?somebody committed murder and you are giving him a six years jail term.This is one of the reason why the police will continue to engage in indiscriminate use of firearms with impunity. I urge the NJC to investigate this judge, to ascertain whether he wasn't financially induced.