Police Arraign Wife, 3 Children Over Husband’s Death
A woman, Mrs. Taiwo Idehen and her three adult children, have been arraigned before an Igbosere High Court of Lagos, over the murder her police husband, Mr. Joseph Idehen, a retired Superintendent of Police.
The police in the charge marked LD/6510c/2017, all the defendants were alleged to have committed the offences at the deceased’s residence located at 5, Odetola Street, off Merit Road, Alagbado, Lagos, on July 4, 2016.
Taiwo who was said to have divorced the deceased over 29 years ago and her three children were alleged to have conspired among themselves to murder the retired senior police officer in a suspicious circumstances.
They were also alleged to have forged a death certificate from Otta General Hospital, Ogun State, which was used in convening the deceased’s corpse to Aragba in Delta State.
The police also alleged that the third defendants, Michael, fraudulently withdrew the sum of N286, 000 from the deceased account domiciled in First Bank Plc. While it also accused all the defendants of fraudulently withdrawing the sum of N2.1 million from the deceased account domiciled in Zenith Bank Plc.
The offences according to the prosecutor, Barrister Morufu Animashaun, the Legal Officer of the General Investigation Department of Force CIID, said the affences are contrary to sections 233, 365 (3)(d), 366 and 287 (5) of the criminal code.
Animashaun while arraigning the defendants before the court said their arrest was predicated on a petition dated August 2016, written to the Police by the Chambers of Milestone Partners, wherein the role played by each of the defendants leading to the death of the retired police officer was stated.
The prosecutor also told the court that upon receiving the petition, each of the defendants were invited for interrogation and they all wrote confessional statements.
All the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.
With the not guilty plea of the defendants, the prosecutor, Barrister Animashaun urged the court to remand them in prison custody pending the conclusion of the matter.
In urging the court not to grant the prosecutor’s request asking for the defendants remand pending the conclusion of the matter, their lawyer, Mr. Kennedy Osunwa, told the the court that he had filed his clients’ bail applications and same have been served on the prosecutor.
Following the application of the defendants’ lawyer, the presiding judge, Justice Akintoye adjourned the matter till January 25, for hearing of their Bail Application. She also ordered that all the defendants be remanded in prison custody pending the hearing and determination of their bail applications.
