Police arraign tortured couple for receiving stolen goods

The police on Thursday arraigned Ejeh Smith, one of the tortured couple, before a Tinubu Magistrate’s Court for allegedly receiving stolen goods.

He was arraigned along with two others, Mattias Manda and Adamu Iliasu, on three counts of conspiracy, stealing and receiving stolen goods.

The magistrate, A.T. Omoleye, granted them bail in the sum of N50,000 each with two sureties in like sum.

PUNCH Metro had reported that Ejeh and his wife, Grace, were tortured by a policeman, Dada Ogunsanya, while they were going home.

After the report, a Lagos-based human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, had filed a N100m case against the police on behalf of the couple for the injustice suffered in the hand of the police corporal and the then Ikoyi Divisional Police Officer, Aisha Haruna.

Our correspondent reported on Thursday that the police at the end of investigation, released the cop after demoting him from a corporal to a constable, and arrested Ejeh for allegedly receiving stolen diesel.

The diesel was said to have been given to him by a security man, who stole it from his boss.

It was reported that Ejeh was arrested by policemen from the Lion Building Division and was granted bail before policemen from the Ikoyi Police Division took over the case.

The matter was subsequently taken to court on Thursday.

The charges read in part, “That you, Mattias Manda, Adamu Iliasu and Ejeh Smith, on February 8, 2015, at about 9am, at Ajayi Benbe Street, Parkview Estate Ikoyi, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did conspire among yourselves to commit felony to wit; stealing, and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 409 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, Nigeria, 2011.”

They pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Their defence counsel, Ben Ogbu, applied for their bail in liberal terms.

The magistrate, Omoleye, then admitted them to bail in the sum of N50,000 with two sureties in like sum.

However, a lawyer from the Femi Falana Chamber, who was representing the couple in the torture case, Mr. Austin Audu, told PUNCH Metro that the N100m suit against the police would still go on.

He said, “Despite the new development, we are still going ahead with the torture case which is already before the court and has been assigned a case number.

“We are only waiting for a date to be assigned for the hearing.

“However, I must say that something is really fishy here. Why is it now that the police are bringing up this case against him? I think something is wrong somewhere.”

The Police Public Relations Officer, Kenneth Nwosu, told our correspondent the police did not frame Ejeh, adding that they were doing their job.

He said, “There were three of them involved in the case; do we say because he has a matter with us, he should not be arrested if he commits an offence?”