Category: Crime

Chidinma, who testified in her trial-within-trial as defence witness one, told Justice Yetunde Adesanya that policemen including Assistant Superintendent of Police, Olusegun Bamidele, and Olufunke Madeyinlo, told her to sign statements against her will.

She said Bamidele told her to narrate the statement he wrote to the state Commissioner of Police after tearing the statement she wrote.

Chidinma is standing trial over the alleged murder of Ataga. She is also charged with stealing and forgery alongside her sister, Chioma Egbuchu, and one Adedapo Quadri.

Addressing the court on Thursday, Chidinma, while being led in evidence in the trial-within-trial by her counsel, Onwunka Egwu, told the court that on June 23, 2021, she was in her room at home when her 10-year-old sister informed her that some men were asking after her.

The witness said, “Immediately, my sister called my Dad (her foster father, Onoh Ojukwu), who came out and asked who the men were? They said they were policemen from (SCID), Panti, and that they came to arrest me and to search the house or that I should go in and bring the (Ataga’s) phone.

“I said I don’t know where the phone and car is and one of the policemen slapped me. My dad said you cannot slap my daughter in my house and the policemen tried to enter the room from the passage.”

Chidnma said when the policemen were taking her away, she told her foster dad to call the family lawyer, Egwu, adding that when they got to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, she was taken to the office of a policeman, Razak Oseni, who, alongside other policemen, questioned her.

She said, “We went back to my house and then returned to the DCP’s office and he started questioning me. I told him I don’t know anything about the death of Mr Ataga, and that was when they made the video that was played in court.

“The DCP said I should make my statement then the IPO, Bamidele, took me to the interrogating room with Mr Chris, and gave me a blank statement form and asked me to write what happened.

“I started writing, then he (Bamidele) took my left hand and handcuffed it to the chair. I wrote what I said at the DCP’s office. While writing the statement, Bamidele read through it and said it was not what happened.”

Chidinma said she told Bamidele that she was writing what happened, adding that before she started writing the statement, she informed him to help her confirm if her foster father had called the family lawyer.

She said, “He (Bamidele) said my (foster) dad cannot make a call as he was in custody. That was when I started writing the statement. When he said the statement I wrote was not what happened, and I told him it was what happened, I received two slaps from Mr Jemiyo.

“He said if I did not comply, my family, my dad, 10-year-old sister and relative will be charged in the murder case. He (Bamidele) brought out his phone, played the video obtained from the scene of the apartment and showed me pictures of Mr Ataga’s body.

“He said now you are going to write and then I started writing. He said why I am slow and I received another slap on my back. I told him that I was not feeling well and needed to rest. He (Bamidele) said there was no time, he then collected the statement form from me and he started writing. Chris then handcuffed my hands to the chair.”

Chidinma said Bamidele initially asked her questions but later stopped, adding that after he was done writing, he read the statement to her and she said what he wrote was not what happened.

She said, “He said this is what you are going to say or else my family will be charged. He read the statement to me again and told me that I should rehearse it. He said that is what I should tell the CP.

“Bamidele and Chris returned in the morning and said I should sign the statement but as I was reluctant in signing it, Chris said I should because nobody is coming for me and that they will provide me with a good government lawyer.

“After signing the statement, I was brought out of the interrogation room, given water to wash my face, and then we entered a vehicle and drove to Ikeja. When we arrived at Bamidele took me to the CP and I said what Bamidele wrote.”

She said after her interrogation at the CP’s office, she was taken down stairs where she saw a lot of people (journalists) with cameras, adding that she was not feeling well as at then.

Chidinma said, “After I was taken to the press, then we drove back to Panti where Bamidele said we are going to do a video recording, and he said I should say everything he had written in the statement and they recorded the video which was played here in court.

“I was returned to the cell; in the evening on the same June 24, Oseni brought me out of the cell, took me to an office, where Madeyinlo and another female officer Bola were. When Oseni left, I was given a blank statement form and I was told to write another statement.

“Jemiyo also walked in and I said I had already written a statement. I said I am tired and have not eaten. I was just sitting when Jemiyo came beside me and hit my head on a wooden table. This was when officer Bola had left.

“Madeyinlo said I should start writing. I picked the pen, wrote the date, my name, then she (Madeyinlo) started dictating to me and said that I should write what she said. I started writing and at the end of writing the statement, she asked me to sign.”

PUNCH

It was gathered from a military source on Wednesday that the insurgents killed 10 of the victims after accusing them of witchcraft.

The five other victims were reportedly killed for attempting to surrender to the military.

Speaking with journalists, the source said the leader of Boko Haram in charge of Mandara Hills, Gwoza General Area and parts of Cameroon, Ali Ngulde, allegedly ordered the killing of the victims.

He said, “The story you heard that they killed 20 women is not true; they killed 15, and they are their members; they killed them four days ago.

“10 of the women were killed by the insurgents after accusing them of witchcraft while five other women were killed for attempting to surrender to the military.

“The leader of Boko Haram in charge of Mandara Hills, Gwoza General Area and parts of Cameroon, Ali Ngulde, ordered their killing.”

Meanwhile, the state Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Sani Shatambaya, said the command had yet to receive any information concerning such an incident.

According to Irene, earlier reports that the kidnap was carried out by herdsmen were untrue.

The police spokesman added that it was a pure incident of armed robbery.

Vanguard had reported that nine persons were, on Tuesday, kidnapped by suspected herdsmen along Calabar-Ikom highway in Cross River state.

Confirming the incident late Tuesday night to Vanguard on telephone, the Cross River state Commissioner of Police, CP Sule Balarabe said the incident took place at 17:15 hours along the Calabar-Ikom Highway.

Some of the workers, who spoke with newsmen but wished to be kept anonymous, explained that there was an order from the State Police Headquarters that workers should vacate the assembly in the interest of peace.

They said they were told that some people were planning to attack the House of Assembly.

However, the newly-elected Speaker of the Assembly, Gboyega Aribisogan, during a telephone chat with newsmen, said there was no crisis in the assembly.

According to him, “the leadership of the police command in Ekiti informed us this morning that they had verifiable intelligence about some hoodlums coming to attack the assembly complex.

“And to avoid breakdown of law and order, theres need for their presence and they have promised us to conduct investigation into the matter and report to us before the close of work today.

“I want to encourage my colleagues and staff of the Assembly to be patient and bear with us.

“Normalcy will soon return to the house,” Aribisogan said.

Recalled that Aribisogan was elected as the new Speaker of the assembly yesterday after defeating Mrs Olubunmi Adelugba from Emure Ekiti.

A native, Godwin Malan told Vanguard, “The attack happened on Tuesday night, mostly women and children were killed.

The vigilantes were able to repel the attackers but they had already burnt a compound and no one knew that people were still inside the compound.

“The casualties were from that compound. The community contacted security, and they came but it was already late.”

The State Police Command through its Public Relations Officer, DSP Alfred Alabo confirmed the incident and explained, “It is true that an incident happened there, the DPO there responded with his team and were able to push back the bandits but some people sustained injuries and were taken to hospital.

“As of yesterday, about seven people with gunshot wounds were taken to the hospital, our men are still tracing the bandits so I can’t reach the DPO on phone for an update. I don’t want to give inaccurate information but once I speak with the DPO about the death of some people, I will let you know.”

Details later…

It was gathered that the suspects, after their robbery operation at Atta Road, went to share their loot at an uncompleted building in the area before the security operatives swooped on them.

An eyewitness in the area said immediately the robbers saw the security operatives, they fired gunshots at them, which led to a gun battle between both parties.

A robber was shot on his leg during the incident, while the others escaped with bullet wounds.

Confirming the incident, the Ogidi Divisional Police Officer, Ahmed Sani, said two guns, a barretta pistol, and one cut-to-size local gun were recovered from the scene.

Sani said it took the combined efforts of both the police and the vigilante operatives to overpower the robbers.

He said, “The one that was shot on his legs was arrested while the others fled with bullet wounds, and investigation is ongoing towards arresting the runaway suspects. A 24-hour surveillance has been ordered in the area and security has been beefed up. We are on the trail of those fleeing suspects.”

Expressing satisfaction with the arrest of one of the robbers, residents in the area said the suspect was among those terrorising the community daily, and urged the police to continue their surveillance in the area during the forthcoming Yuletide.

A resident, identified as Okey Uzor, said the robbers had continued to give them sleepless nights because the police limited their services within the barracks.

“Our problem is that the police are no longer on patrol because of the activities of unknown gunmen. Robbers now capitalise on it to rob and maim the innocent public at will, without fear of attack,” he added.