CRIME & PUNISHMENT

Family Petitions IG over Officer Who Shot Dead Unarmed Man in Lagos

Funke Olaode

It was one death too many as his immediate family is yet to recover from the shock of a vibrant young man who went to the filling station and ended up in the morgue.  This was fuel scarcity’s peak that engulfed the nation and fell on Workers’ Day.

On the backdrop of not getting expedited justice, the grieving family of the deceased, Eniafe Toheeb, a member of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) who was shot dead by a police officer on May 1, 2024, at Obalende area of Lagos has asked the inspector general of police to hasten investigation into the death of their son (Toheeb) as family are no longer comfortable with unnecessary delay in their investigation.

The fleeing police officer allegedly shot Toheeb at the premises of the NNPC filling station located at Obalende roundabout in Lagos on the orders of another officer, Omeje Christian, who was apprehended and handed over to the police authority.

While addressing the journalists in Ikeja, the family raised the alarm over the delay and asked the IGP to order a thorough investigation to unmask the officer who shot unarmed Toheeb.

Mr. Eniafe Noheem decried the delay in their petition to the Inspector General of Police regarding the ‘pace and manner’ of the investigation being conducted by the men of Panti Police Station, Yaba, into the incident.

He said there is no indication of progress in the investigation almost three months after the incident, saying the delay is making the police’s action look like a cover-up to protect one of their own.

“The police authorities have not provided any vital information to the family of the deceased. We are asking for justice for the deceased. The deceased aged parents are pleading to all authorities, government, and both local and international human rights organisations to come to our aid,” he stated.

Also, the Vice-Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, Mr. Wale Giwa, who witnessed the incident, said the incident occurred at about 8:00 p.m., noting that “Officer Omeje and his fleeing colleague had led two Toyota Hilux vehicles into the petrol station through the exit gate, thus blocking customers from leaving after their purchases. While one of the vehicles was attached to two armed mobile policemen, the other was.

Giwa said, “The hindrance caused by the Hilux vehicles preventing motorists from exiting the filling station elicited an uproar from all present. Within the intervening period, Officer Omeje Christian and his unidentified colleague dashed away briefly, only to return on a motorcycle with a loaded rifle hanging from the latter’s neck.

“Upon the order of Officer Omeje Christian to shoot at any resistance, the unidentified policeman opened fire, and his shot hit Toheeb Eniafe, who slumped and died, while another shot hit one of their Toyota Hilux vehicles, which burst into flames.

“Following the shooting, some good Samaritans apprehended Officer Omeje and handed him over to the police while attempting to flee, but his unidentified trigger-happy colleague had made it away by then. Other people scrambled to revive a lifeless Toheeb Eniafe just as petrol attendants mobilised to push the burning vehicle away from the premises to avert another disaster which may result in the burning of the petrol station.”

Giwa further explained that the officer was arguing with the Tricycle operation, who were on cue at the filling station to buy fuel, and noting that the deceased was just entering the fuel station before a stray bullet hit him.

He also said the filling station has a camera, which can aid the police investigation. He added that the deceased is a NURTW member and the unit auditor.

The sister of the deceased, Bakare Folashade Eniafe, pleaded with the police authority to hasten the investigation and bring the perpetrator to book.

“We are by this medium appealing to you, sir, to use your good office to wade into this matter. We will not relent on our quest for justice in this case. We hope that your office is willing and instrumental to the speedy prosecution of all those culpable in the death of the deceased,” she pleaded.

Diezani’s Husband Asks Court To Bar Ex-wife from Using His Name

Wale Igbintade

Nigerians woke up to the unpleasant news of the dissolution of the union from the household of the former top Naval Officer, Rear Admiral Allison Madueke and his wife, Diezani, the former Petroleum Minister under former President Goodluck Jonathan. The duo got married in 1999 in a society wedding barely three years after he lost his first wife and mother of his five adult children.

To many, it was a marriage made in heaven. Diezani, a self-made woman, was Shell’s top female Executive director. The marriage later produced one child, a boy. Diezani dabbled into politics, holding offices until she clinched the top job at the lucrative oil ministry. She ran into trouble water shortly after then-President Muhammadu Buhari was voted in 2015. Diezani relocated to the UK, where she has since faced various allegations of this and that. It was shocking when news flittered that the former Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Alison Madueke, asked the Lagos State High Court to stop his former wife from using his first name (Alison) and surname (Madueke) as her Surname following the dissolution of their marriage.

The petitioner prayed the court for an order directing the respondent (Diezani) to adopt and revert to her pre-marital surname (Agama) and also publications in newspapers of national circulation in both Nigeria and the United Kingdom of a notice of her discontinuation of the use of the Petitioner’s First name (Alison) and Surname (Madueke).

The petition, in the High Court of Lagos, suit no LD/15144HD/2024, seeks that the ex-wife desist from using the petitioner’s name, which poses a significant risk of legal and financial harm to the petitioner as the respondent faces criminal trials in Nigeria and UK.

The petition stated that they stopped living together in May 2015 after her ministerial appointment, and in November 2021, citing the irretrievable breakdown of marriage, Diezani filed a petition for dissolution of marriage (Suit No. NSD/MG345/2021) at the High Court of Nassarawa State, Nassarawa Judicial Division, sitting at Mararaba Gurku and on April 13, 2022, Judgment was delivered in suit number SD/MG345/2021 by Hon. Justice A.A. Ozegya, dissolving the marriage between the petitioner and the Respondent on the ground that the marriage has broken down irretrievably.

In his petition, the retired naval officer stated that the respondent faces public allegations of corruption and financial misconduct, for which trials are ongoing. The persistent portrayal of the respondent as the petitioner’s spouse is creating embarrassment, a misleading impression, and tarnishing the petitioner’s reputation, integrity, and public image.

Even though the marriage has been dissolved and is now legally finalised, the respondent, more than two years later, continues to use the Petitioner’s first name (Alison) and surname (Madueke) as her own without any justification or consent from the Petitioner, which falsely suggests to the public continuing relationship between the parties though same has since legally ended.

According to the statement, the petitioner instructed his solicitors to address a letter to the respondent, requesting her to cease the ongoing use of his first name and surname. Messrs Foundation Chambers sent a formal letter dated December 14, 2023, urging the respondent to revert to her pre-marital name (Diezani Kogbeni Agama) following the legal dissolution of the marriage.

In a five-paragraph verifying affidavit supporting the petition deposed to by the petitioner, he stated that the marriage certificate was with the respondent at all material times and that he did not have a copy.

He said the marriage between him and the respondent had been validly dissolved in Suit No. NSD/MG345/202U at the Mararaba Gurku Division of the Nasarawa High Court.

Security Guard Bags Life Imprisonment for Sexually Molesting Five-year-old

Funke Olaode

The Ikeja Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence has sentenced a security guard, Saviour Udoh, to life imprisonment for sexually assaulting a five-year-old minor (name withheld) on a church premises.

Justice Rahman Oshodi sentenced Udoh to lifetime jail on the sole charge of sexual assault by penetration, preferred against him by the Lagos State Government.

In his judgment, Oshodi held that the prosecution had proved the charge against Udoh beyond reasonable doubt.

He said the court had carefully considered the evidence presented during the trial, including the convict’s confessional statement, the testimony of the prosecutrix (survivor), her mother, the Investigative Police Officer (IPO) and the medical evidence.

According to him, the crime committed by the convict was a grave one, as it involved the sexual exploitation of a vulnerable child.

The judge said, “The prosecutrix, who was only five years old at the time of the incident, trusted you as ‘Uncle Saviour,’ and her mother entrusted you with her care, but you breached that trust most disgustingly by sexually assaulting the child in a place of worship.

“The impact of your actions on the prosecutrix and her family cannot be overstated because the prosecutrix’s mother, in her testimony, stated that she was still taking the victim to the hospital three years after the incident and that the prosecutrix was still having discharges.

“This statement highlights the long-lasting physical and emotional trauma inflicted upon the child and the ongoing medical issues she faces as a result of your actions.”

The judge added, “Sexual assault by penetration is a serious offence that attracts a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment under section 261 of the Lagos State Criminal Law (supra) and this severe punishment reflects society’s condemnation of such heinous acts and the need to protect our children from sexual predators.”

Oshodi said he had considered the aggravating factors such as the age of the prosecutrix, the breach of trust, and the location of the offence in determining the convict’s sentence.

He said he had also considered the mitigating factors, including the convict’s lack of previous convictions and his plea for mercy at sentencing.

The judge, however, said the aggravating factors far outweighed any mitigating circumstances as the severity of his crime and its impact on the prosecutrix, her family and the larger society could not be ignored.

“Therefore, having found you guilty of sexual assault by penetration, I no sentence you, Saviour Udoh, to life imprisonment, as mandated by section 261 of the Criminal Law (supra). You will serve this sentence in a Maximum-Security Custodial Centre or wherever the Nigerian Correctional Service may direct you, and your name will be added to the register of sex offenders.

“I hope that this sentence sends a strong message to society that such crimes against children will not be tolerated and that the justice system will hold offenders accountable for their actions.”

The state’s lead counsel, Babajide Boye, had presented four witnesses to testify against the convict during the trial while the convict and his friend testified for the defence. The prosecutor told the court that the convict committed the offence on December 12  2018, at The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) on Osifila Street, Anifowose, Ikeja, Lagos.

The prosecution submitted that the convict sexually assaulted the five-year-old girl by penetrating her anus with his fingers.

Alleged Forgery: Appeal Court Upturns Conviction of Italian Widow, Orders Refund of N50m Fine

Wale Igbintade

The Court of Appeal, Lagos Division, has upturned the judgement of Justice Mojisola Dada of the Ikeja Division of the Lagos State Special Offences Court, which convicted and sentenced an Italian woman, Floriana De Stefani, to three years’ imprisonment for claiming property belonging to a company, Waterside Properties Limited.

The appellate court, in a unanimous decision, set aside her conviction and the order of possession made by the trial court.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Lagos zonal office, had arraigned Floriana De Stefani before the court on a five-count charge bordering on forgery and stealing property belonging to a company, Waterside Properties Limited.

The appellant pleaded not guilty to the charge when it was read to them.

The judge convicted and sentenced the appellant to three years’ imprisonment for claiming property belonging to a company, Waterside Properties Limited.

The judge stated that the widow used forged documents to claim that she was a tenant following the demise of her husband, Mr. Luca Signorelli.

The court, however, gave her a fine option of N50 million.

Dissatisfied, the appellant, through her team of lawyers led by Chief Mrs A Akinjide SAN, appealed against the judgement.

The appellate urged the court to determine “whether the offence (count 6) upon which the Appellant was convicted was under the scope of the EFCC’s power and, if not, whether the trial court has jurisdiction to entertain same.

She also urged the court to determine whether, from the evidence before the court, the prosecution proved beyond! reasonable doubt that Exhibit P (deed of Assignment) was a forged document.

Resolving the issue, the Court of Appeal, in its lead judgement delivered by Justice Folashade Ojo, allowed the appeal and resolved all four issues in favour of the appellant.

Other panel members, Justice Abdullahi Bayero and Justice Paul Bassi, also supported the lead judgement.

Justice Folashade Ojo held, “It is trite that there is no duty on a defendant/accused person to prove his innocence under the Nigerian system of criminal justice. The defendant/accused person may choose not to utter a word as he is not bound to say anything because he is presumed innocent until proven guilty.”

The judge then declared, “The trial court, therefore, erred when it directed the appellant to yield up possession of the disputed properties to Waterside Properties Limited and I so hold. My conclusion on this issue is that it is resolved against the respondent and in favour of the appellant. Having resolved all the four issues in this appeal in favour of the Appellant, I find merit in the appeal and it is hereby allowed. Consequently, I set aside the Judgment of the High Court of Lagos State in charge No: ID/8707C/2019.”

The judge added that the conviction and sentence imposed on the appellant “are set aside” and that the appellant “is discharged and acquitted on count 6 of the amended charge for which she was convicted and sentenced by the trial court.”

The judge also mentioned that the order of possession made by the trial court “is also set aside” and ordered that “the fine of N50 million imposed on the appellant where it has been paid be refunded to her.”