Lagos – Nine men and a woman were on Friday arraigned at an Igbosere Chief Magistrates Court in Lagos, over the alleged assault of three women at the Oba Morufu International Market, Ejigbo, Lagos.
The accused include: Isiaka Waidi, 60; Azeez Akinosun, 35; Saheed Adisa, 28; Jimoh Busari, 49; Tijani Lateef, 37 and Adekunle Adenuga, 57.
Others are; Buhari Yusuf, 21; Haruna Abdullahi, 19: Ahmed Adisa, 65, and a woman, Oloruntoyin Dauda, 45, the head of the Market Women Association.
Waidi, Akinosun, Adisa, Busari, Yusuf and Abdullahi are facing charges of conspiring to murder and indecent acts.
Waidi is facing an additional charge of demanding property with violence, with intent to steal.
Akinosun, Adisa and Busari also face additional charges of conspiracy, managing an unlawful society and unlawful assembly.
While, Lateef, Adenuga, Adisa and Dauda are facing charges of conspiracy and neglect to prevent felony.
The accused, however, denied the charges.
The prosecutor, ASP Charles Odii, told a packed courtroom that the accused committed the offences alongside others now at large on Feb. 11, 2013 at the Oba Morufu International Market, Ejigbo, Lagos.
He said Waidi, Akinosun, Adisa, Busari and Abdullahi conspired with others now at large to commit murder.
Odii said the accused assaulted one Miss Juliana Agoma, Mrs Ajoke Agoma and Mrs Nike Salami by inserting ground pepper into their private parts.
The prosecutor said that Waidi also demanded N50,000 from one Mr Fima Agoma and threatened to injure him and kill his wife and daughter, if he failed to pay the money.
He said that Akinosun, Adisa, Busari assisted in the management of an unlawful society called Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) and also took part in an unlawful assembly at the market.
The prosecutor said that Dauda, the head of the Market Women’s Association, Lateef and Adenuga neglected to prevent the commission of the offences at the market.
He said that they were aware of the torture of the women and failed to use all reasonable means to avoid or stop the torture.
Odii said that the offences were in violation of Sections 41, 44(4), 134, 231, 299, 408 and 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.
Section 299 prescribes 14 years imprisonment for anyone convicted of the offence of conspiring to commit murder.
Mr Fima Agoma was present in court as a prosecution witness, while Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, the President, Women Arise for Change Initiative, was there to observe proceedings.
The Chief Magistrate, Mrs Adeola Adedayo, admitted each of the accused to bail in the sum of N100,000 with two sureties each in like sum and adjourned the case till July 23, for mention.
She also directed that the case file be duplicated and transferred to the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), for advice.
No comments:
Post a Comment