In a dramatic twist, the police
in Lagos yesterday discredited their earlier claim that they secured the
release of three students of the Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary School,
Ikorodu, abducted from their school premises last month without payment of any
ransom.
Putting a lie to their own claim yesterday when six persons
recently arrested in connection with the kidnapping of the three students were
arraigned in court for a remand order, the police in the charge sheet filed in
court admitted that the suspects were paid N5.6 million before they released
the girls.
To cover the lie, the police in the charge sheet, alleged that on
March 5, 2016 at about 8pm along Ikorodu-Ijebu Ode road, Lagos the suspects
armed with AK 47 rifles and other offensive weapons robbed one Venerable Ola
Oluna Adeyemi, the Principal of Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary School, the
sum of N5.6million.
It was however gathered the N5.6m
was the ransom paid by the school through the principal to the abductors before
the suspects released the girls and the police claiming they rescued the
students without paying any money.
The suspects are: Emmanuel
Arigidi, 37: Gift Pius, 30: Omoni Rufus Fred, 32; Owei Omobo Geofrey, 38;
Akanji Seun, 38: and James Henry Segun, 29, who were arraigned before a Lagos
State Magistrate court, Ebute-Metta have been remanded for the first 30 days.
Their remand was sequel to an
application brought before Chief Magistrate I. O. Adelaja and argued by by the
lawyer to the Police, Mr. Godwin Osuyi.
Arguing the remand application, Osuyi, said the application was brought pursuant to section 264(1) and (2), of the administration of Criminal Justice of Lagos State, 2011. Osuyi informed the Court that the remand application was to enable the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP), to issue an advice on the matter. He therefore urged the court to remand the suspects for the first 30 days, pending when the advice will be issued by the DPP.
Arguing the remand application, Osuyi, said the application was brought pursuant to section 264(1) and (2), of the administration of Criminal Justice of Lagos State, 2011. Osuyi informed the Court that the remand application was to enable the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP), to issue an advice on the matter. He therefore urged the court to remand the suspects for the first 30 days, pending when the advice will be issued by the DPP.
However, the six suspects who
were represented by Mr. Ola Ogunbiyj did not oppose the police’s remand
application. Consequently, the presiding Chief Magistrate, Mrs. Adelaja,
ordered that the six suspected kidnappers be remanded in prisons custody for
the first 30 days, while the police was ordered to duplicate the case file and
forward it to the DPP for an advice.
In the charge sheet marked
D/13/16, attached with the remand application, police alleged that the
suspected kidnappers had on February 29, 2016, at about 8p.m, while armed with
AK 47, and offensive weapons, invaded Babington Macaulay Junior Seminary
School, Ikorodu, and unlawfully kidnapped and detained three students of the
school.
The three students allegedly
kidnapped by the suspects includes: Tofunmi Popo-Olaniyan, 15: Olusa Timilelun,
14 and Deborah Akintayo, 14: all girls. The police alleged that the suspects
took away the students to a creek between Imota and Igbokuta of Ikorodu, on
February 29, before they were rescued by the police on March 6.
Aside that, the first suspect,
Emmanuel Arigidi, was alleged to be a member of the armed gang that robbed FCMB
at Admiralty Way, Lekki, the sum of N24 million, on March 12, 2015. The
offences according to the Osuyi, are contrary to punishable under sections 409,
269(1), and 295(2) of the Criminal laws of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2011
..theelites
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