Shock pervaded the quiet atmosphere of the Ebute
Meta Magistrate’s Court, Lagos, after an investigating police officer, Corporal
Alagbe Olumide, admitted that he was forced to arraign a murder suspect,
Ayodimeji Alegbeleye, for the crime he never committed.
Alegbeleye, 29, was being tried for the murder of
one James Igbahan in January 2013 at Ajah.
The police had claimed that the accused stabbed
Igbahan with knife in his left ribs which led to his death.
After the two counts were read to him, and he had
pleaded not guilty, the prosecution lawyer filed application for his remand in
prison custody pending the advice from the office of the Director of Public
Prosecutions.
However, the defence counsel protested the
application, saying the accused knew nothing about the crime.
The magistrate, Mrs. M.O Tanimola, thereafter
summoned the police to give an account of what had transpired.
In his report to the court, Olumide said he was
told to arraign the accused, adding that the investigation had shown that he
was only a friend to the real suspect.
He said, “My Lord, it was his friend that stabbed
the deceased. The real offender is now at large.
“Alegbeleye was arraigned because we found him at
the scene of the crime.
“The junior brother of the suspect had earlier
been arrested, but the Ajah Police Division released him.”
The magistrate further queried why the defendant
was charged when he was not the suspect.
“The police authorities said I should charge him
with murder. I told them that my investigation showed he was not part of it,
but they insisted that I should charge him, and I didn’t know what to do,” he
submitted.
Olumide said statements taken from the accused
showed he had returned from his work and met the two men arguing over matters
connected with cultism.
He said he then went out to take his bath and on
returning, found the deceased in a pool of blood and with knife wounds.
He said the police arrested him because he was a
friend of the suspect.
The magistrate, in her ruling said since the
accused was being punished for a crime he did not commit, there were no grounds
for remand.
The case was subsequently struck out.
Source: Punch
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