₦airaland Forum

Suspected billionaire kidnap kingpin Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike alias Evans has told a Lagos High Court in Igbosere that the fresh charges against him are so ridiculous that only a court run by Uganda’s former military dictator Idi Amin Dada can entertain them.

He urged Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo to quash the twin charges and 11 counts filed against him by the Lagos State Government and allow him “to go home.”

Evans’ counsel, Olukoya Ogungbeje, also accused the prosecution of conniving with the court registrar to improperly obtain a document relating to the case from the court files.

“Whatever has been removed from the court files should be made available to me,” Ogungbeje said.



This was, however, dismissed by the judge after a strong objection from Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Ms Titilayo Shitta-Bey.

“I take a very strong exception to learned counsel’s comments. That is a very strong allegation,” Shitta-Bey said.

Justice Taiwo, who assured Ogungbeje of fairness in the trial, said: “I trust My registrars implicitly.”

The proposed charges, seen by The Nation on Monday when Evans and his alleged sccomplices were brought first brought to Igbosere, has four counts on one and seven counts on the other.

In the first charge, Evans and second defendant Victor Nonso Aduba are to stand trial on four counts of conspiracy, kidnapping and unlawful possession of weapons.

In the other charge, he and three others will face seven counts of conspiracy, attempted kidnapping, kidnapping, murder and attempted murder, including the alleged attempted kidnap of the Chairman of The Young Shall Grow Motors, Vincent Amaechi Obianodo.



The second to fourth defendants are Joseph Ikenna Emeka, Chiemeka Arinze and Udeme Frank Upong.

According to the second charge, the state will call 12 witnesses – six civilians and six senior police officers – to testify against Evans and Aduba for the alleged attempted kidnap of Obianodo.

The prosecution also listed nine exhibits that it intends to tender, including four rifles, two pistols, bullet proof vests, among others.

Before his first charge could be read last Monday, Evans, through his counsel, Olukoya Ogungbeje, drew the court’s attention to his two applications challenging the competence of the charge.

At the commencement of proceedings yesterday, he argued that both charges should be quashed and dismissed on the grounds, among others, that they were repetitive and duplicitous.

He also argued that the third and fourth counts on the first charge relating to firearms possession and sale required the fiat of the Attorney-General of the Federation which, according to him, the prosecution did not have.

He added: “Only a court in Uganda, Idi Amin’s Uganda, will entertain this kind of information (charge). This kind if charge can only be filed in a court in Uganda. We are in Nigeria. I urge this court to dismiss the charge against the defendant and allow him to go home.”

His applications to quash the charges were brought pursuant to Section 55 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Lagos State, 2015 and Sections 36 and 6 (6) (b) of the Constitution.

Ogungbeje argued that all 11 counts in both charges were “bad for duplicity, grossly defective, a gross abuse of court’s process and do not disclose a prima facie case” against Evans.

However, in its counter-affidavit, the Lagos State Government contended among others that there was no duplicity in the charges.

Shitta-Bey explained that the second to fifth defendants in the new charge are not defendants in charge number; ID/5970C/2017.

She stated that apart from the confessional statements of Evans, arms and ammunitions were recovered from him and his alleged cohorts.

As to why Evans could not be tried in one court for all the charges, she said: “It is not feasible to bring all the charges before one judge for reasons of logistics and it is going to make the case of the prosecution so complex and difficult to prove.

“We have many victims and witnesses. The offences happened at different times, places and spanned over several years. The only common factor is the defendant.”

The DPP also countered Evans’ claim that the prosecution had no fiat from the Attorney-General of the Federation to prosecute the case.

Justice Taiwo, however, adjourned till November 10 for ruling on Evans’ applications.

The judge also ordered that Evans’ three co-defendants on the second charge be moved to Kirikiri Maximum Security Prisons, Ikoyi.

Justice Taiwo made the order following an application that one of the suspects requires medical attention which are better available in prison.

The suspects have been in police custody since their arrest, unlike Evans who was transferred from the police to prison custody following his arraignment before Justice Hakeem Oshodi of a Lagos High Court in Ikeja.

Accuses Army of looting family’s property

From Magnus Eze, Abuja and OKEY SAMPSON, Aba

Lawyers to the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), have petitioned the United Nations and the British government to prevail on the Federal Government to suspend alleged hostile activities towards the family house of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu in Afaraukwu Ibeku, Umuahia, Abia State.

The petition, written by Ifeanyi Ejiofor, on behalf of the IPOB leader’s father, Eze Israel Okwu-Kanu, also urged them to request the government to return without further ado, Kanu’s private property allegedly looted during the raid on October 8.

Dated October 12, 2017, and entitled “Re: Unlawful raids, intimidation and looting in the home of Nnamdi Kanu, by the Nigerian Military operatives and their Police counterparts, on October 8, 2017,” the petition alleged that Kanu’s home was invaded, and looted by rampaging security agents.

According to him, the closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, which picked the horrendous raid, revealed the brazen looting and carting away of valuables and household equipment by the invaders.

Ejiofor said the raid lacked the backing and legitimacy of any known legislative enactment in the country, more so, when there were pending law suits, instituted at the Federal High Court Abuja, challenging, on the whole, “the initial murderous invasion of Nnamdi Kanu’s home by the Nigerian soldiers, his abduction from his home or his possible elimination by the rampaging troops, request for court order to compel the Nigerian Military to produce Nnamdi Kanu in court, and also lawsuit requesting the court to vacate the exparte order purportedly proscribing Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and their designation as a terrorist organisation.”

The lawyer, urged the British government to treat the said proscription of IPOB by government with greatest circumspection as the legality or otherwise of such exercise was already a subject of litigation.

Part of the petition reads: “It cannot stand because the entire process culminating into the granting of the order is laden with high powered conspiracy, double standard, and bad faith. It is more so, when the order in question is now being challenged in Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/871/2017, Attorney General of the Federation Vs Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and slated for hearing on October 23, 2017.

“The Federal Government of Nigeria is under obligation to furnish the British Government with the particulars of Nnamdi Kanu’s current state. The question on Nnamdi Kanu’s whereabouts has continued to beg for an answer, which must be answered by the authority that invaded his home on September 14, 2017, and shot many unarmed and defenseless civilians dead, while many were abducted alive.

“The British Government is, therefore, most respectfully invited to prevail on the Nigerian Government to suspend further untoward activities in Nnamdi Kanu’s home, and to return without further ado, all his private property looted on October 8, 2017.

“It is our further prayers that the Nigerian government should be requested to produce our client’s son (Nnamdi Kanu), whose whereabouts could not be accounted for, after the murderous raid in his home on September 14, 2017 or release the corpse to our client for befitting burial, if he was killed in the murderous attack.”

He, however, commended the British Government in particular, and others, he called responsible foreign governments, for their uniform condemnation of the military onslaught in the South Eastern states, particularly the bloody raid on Nnamdi Kanu’s home, and proscription of IPOB.

Meanwhile, the Abia State Commissioner of Police, Anthony Michael Ogbizi, has insisted that the police will continue to visit the country home of the IPOB leader so long as they got intelligence reports that arms were being stockpiled there.

Reacting over a raid on Kanu’s home, last Sunday, the police boss explained that all items recovered there were itemised and marked as exhibits, denying that anything was stolen during the joint military/police operation there.

Music artiste, David Adeleke, aka Davido is under fire for lying to the police that he did not know how his deceased friend, Tagbo Umeike, got to the Lagos General Hospital’s premise.

Acting Police Commissioner Imohimi Edgal, Wednesday, told reporters that Close Circuit Television (CCTV) footages from the hospital proved that Umeike was brought in dead (BID) by Davido’s escort driver, Tunde Usutu and two of his (Davido) friends, Agbeje Olaoye and Idris Busari.

He said the men abandoned the deceased inside his ash Toyota Camry LSD378EL on the instruction of Davido.



According to Edgal, Davido, his friends and the escort driver were being questioned by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) Lion Building.

He said: “On October 3, at about 9:20am, the Chief Security Officer (CSO) of General Hospital Lagos, Oparanti Moshood, alerted the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) Lion Building that an unidentified male was brought in dead (BID) in an Ash Toyota Camry Saloon car marked LSD378EL by two unidentified males.

“From the international passport found in the deceased’s car, the DPO gave his identity as Tagbo Umeike. Immediately after, one Caroline Danjuma, an actress and the victim’s fiancee, published on her Instagram page that her boyfriend died in the company of one David Adeleke, alias Davido and friends.

“To be objective and verify facts, I called for a pre-investigation meeting in my conference room. In attendance were all parties including family, friends of the deceased; those of Davido; Caroline Danjuma; the DPO and investigating officers.

“The meeting confirmed that the deceased Tagbo Umeike on that day met and had drinks with friends at Shisha Bar amongst whom was Davido. The bar tender confirmed the deceased had as much as 40 tots of Tequila and exhibited signs of drunkenness.

The CCTV footage also confirmed this.



“Davido had told the police he had left Shisha Bar for DNA Night Club in Victoria Island without the deceased and was only informed by mutual friends of his death while he was at DNA.

“However, investigation revealed that Davido’s white Toyota Hilux escort driver, Tunde Usutu, accompanied by one Agbeje Olaoye and one Idris Busari, both Davido’s friends, took the deceased to the General Hospital Lagos and abandoned him in his vehicle on the instruction of Davido.

“The CCTV footage at the hospital picked the escort vehicle and the entire activity. The vehicle was recovered from Davido’s residence at 7, Awoshika Street, Lekki Phase 1.

“This completely debunks Davido’s claim that he did not know how the deceased got to the General Hospital. The interim autopsy report stated that the victim died of Asphyxia.”

On the cause of death of two other Davido’s friends who were found dead inside a BMW car marked KJA631AY on October 7 at Banana Island, Edgal said the autopsy had not been concluded.

He said: “A case of sudden and unnatural death (SUD) was reported on October 7, at about 8pm by the CSO Banana Island, Ikoyi, to the DPO Ikoyi that two persons namely, Olugbemi Abiodun and Chime Amechina of Flat Bill, Ocean Parade, were found dead inside one white BMW Saloon car marked KJA631AY, at underground garage in the estate.

“Police operatives raced to the scene where the bodies of the victims were taken to LASUTH, Ikeja for joint medical examination to determine cause of death.

“Victims were found motionless and were confirmed dead by a medical doctor. Further search into the vehicle revealed that wrapped substances suspected to be weeds were recovered and might have been used by the victims.

“Liquid substances were observed on their mouths and nostrils. From investigation by policemen at the scene, there were no visible marks on their bodies. The result of the autopsy is still being awaited. The pathologist said there was need for further findings before conclusions could be drawn on the cause of death.”

The singer has responded to the invitation, as he was seen at the Lagos State Police Command, Ikeja, in the company of his lawyer.