By Phil Okose, Onitsha

Nineteen persons who ob­tained an interim order from an Otuocha High Court, restraining the inspector general of police, an investigating police officer from the IGP’s Special Tactical Squad, and the Anambra state commissioner of police, from arresting them, pending the determination of their motion on notice, have ap­proached the court seeking to commit the trio to prison for con­tempt of the court.

In the committal proceedings (Form 49) filed before the Otuo­cha High in Otuocha Judicial di­vision, presided over by Justice D.O.C. Amaechina, the appli­cants, Anayo Nnabugwu, Oke­chukwu Okereke, Peter Ezeono­nigbo, Godwin Madubuko, Uche Okoli, Peter Nnamdi Madueke, Uche Onwuka, Pius Ifeagwazi, Leonard Obiajulu, Arinze Obin­wanne, Boniface Ukachukwu, Jude Ezecheta, Chinazam Ezeay­om, Boniface Ojukwu, Martin Obi, Anthony Abazu, Ekwunife Okeke Sunday Aroh and Jideofor Obi are praying the court to com­mit the trio to prison for disobey­ing its earlier order.

In the application filed on their behalf, by their legal counsel, H. N. C. Moghalu, under Order 9, Rule 13(1), (2) and (30 of the Judgement Enforcement Pro­cedure Rules, the applicants complained that the trio had in defiance of earlier order issued by the court, continued to hunt, arrest, detain and charge them to court for murder.

Specifically, the applicants re­ferred to an eight-count charge of conspiracy, attempted murder, un­lawful possession of fire arms and armed robbery preferred against them at Nteje Chief Magistrate Court where they had so far plead­ed not guilty to all the charges.

In an affidavit in support of the Form 49 deposed to by the 16th applicant, Anthony Abazu, on their behalf, the applicants re­called that on February 22, this year, this honourable court made an order of interim injunction asking the IGP, IPO and CP to stop arresting them, pending the hearing an determination of the substantive motion and the or­der was duly served on them, yet they continued to hunt for them.

Abazu further recalled that while the order is still subsist­ing, the second respondent, ASP Olima Jackson, acting on the instructions of the IGP and Anambra CP, and with police of­ficers assigned to him, started hunting for them (applicants), to the extent that they arrested the 13th applicant, Chinazam Ezeanyom and took him to Abu­ja where they detained him for several days before bringing him back to Anambra and arraigning him with two others at the Nteje Chief Magistrate Court.

Abazu also recalled that as if that was not enough, the 1st and 3rd respondents (IGP and Anambra CP), using the same 2nd respondent, Jackson and policemen they assigned to him, continued searching for other ap­plicants to have them arrested and detained as they had done to the 13th applicant, adding that along the line, the applicants ap­plied for and caused Form 48 to be issued on the parties sought to be committed to prison and yet they continued to disobey the order.

He deposed that despite the ser­vice of the Form 48, on them, they have continued to disobey the or­der of the court by still hunting for the applicants to be arrested and detained, adding that the respon­dents will not stop disobeying the court order unless they are com­mitted to prison.

He said that apart from the three respondents, they had al­ready taken other respondents to court, including Surveyor Oseloka Anyaonu, Akachukwu Oguejiofor, Obinna Okoye, On­yeka Okoye, Celestine Olisah, Maduka Olisah, Amadi Olisah, Peter Olisah, Abuchi Olisah and Onwuobi Odelga for themselves and on behalf of the other mem­bers.

https://orientdailynews.com.ng/anambra/contempt-applicants-seek-court-order/





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