Court Returns Billionaire Kidnapper, Evans’ Fundamental Rights Action Suit For Reassignment
Justice Abdul-Azeez Anka of a Federal High Court in Lagos on Wednesday returned the case file of the N300 million fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by suspected billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike a.k.a. Evans, against the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris and three others to the court’s administrative judge for re-assignment to another judge.
Justice Anka took the decision following his transfer to the Yola Division of the court by the Acting Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Abdul Kafarati.
An application filed by the Inspector General of Police and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) had on August 29 prevented the judge from delivering judgment in the matter.
In the application, the two respondents argued that they deserved to be heard before any judgment could be delivered on the matter.
At the resumed hearing of the matter yesterday, Justice Anka faulted Evans’ lawyer, Olukoya Ogungbeje, for wrongly insinuating that the matter has been fixed for judgment in his letters to the Chief Registrar and the Acting Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.
According to the judge, the court has obliged to hear the application by the IGP and NPF, therefore, there is no way the matter could be reserved for judgment.
The judge later directed that the case file be transmitted to the Admin Judge, Justice Mojisola Olatoregun, for re-assignment to another judge.
Evans is demanding the sum of N300 million from the police for illegally detaining him since June 10, 2017, without pressing any charge against him in court, until his eventual arraignment at an Ikeja High Court.
The relief was contained in the motion on notice of a suit marked FHC/L/CS/1012/2017, which he filed against the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris and three others.
The Nigeria Police Force, Commissioner of Police, Lagos State and the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Lagos State Police Command, were joined as co-respondents in the suit.
At his arraignment before Justice Hakeem Oshodi of an Ikeja High Court, the suspected kidnapper pleaded guilty to the offence of kidnapping.
He was docked alongside five members of his gang by the Lagos State Government on a 2-count charge of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and kidnapping.
Others arraigned with him are: Uche Amadi (2nd defendant); Ogechi Uchechukwu (3rd defendant); Okwuchukwu Nwachukwu (4th defendant); Chilaka Ifeanyi (5th defendant) and Victor Chukwunonso Aduba (6th defendant).
Upon their arraignment, Evans and Amadi (2nd defendant) pleaded guilty to all the counts while Nwachukwu (4th defendant) also owned up to count one but pleaded not guilty to count two. Other defendants however pleaded not guilty to the two counts.
All the defendants have been remanded in Kirikiri maximum prison while the trial of those who pleaded not guilty has been fixed for October 19.
