A Chief Magistrates’ Court sitting in Port Harcourt yesterday discharged the seven accused persons for want of evidence of complicity in the crime.
The four students -- Tekena Elkanah, Toku Lloyd, Chiadika Biringa and Ugonna Obuzor -- were murdered by a mob at Omuokiri, Aluu in October last year which had accused them of being armed robbers caught by the community’s vigilante group.
The claim became controversial as other versions of what actually happened came out. The murdered students were said to have gone to demand the payment of a debt owed one of them from a man. The man was said to have raised false alarm, claiming that the students were robbers.
The community, it was said, had suffered frequent harassment by armed robbers. The news of the arrest of the alleged armed robbers soon drew out the entire community and in no time, the four students were at the village square after the verdict of guilt had been passed on them by the traditional ruler of the community.
In a brazen manner that showed disregard for the sanctity of human life, the four students were clubbed to death, after which they were set ablaze. Onlookers’ video recorded the bestial act and posted same on the internet. In no time, the story and the gory pictures went viral, drawing global condemnation.
Using the footages from the circulated video recordings, the principal culprits, including the paramount ruler of Omuokiri-Aluu, Alhaji Hassan Welewa, were arrested. Since then, they have been standing trial for the crime.
When the accused persons appeared in court last December, the trial Chief Magistrate, Emma Woke of Court I, referred the file to the state Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) for advice and adjourned the matter until February 28.
At the resumed hearing yesterday, the chief magistrate discharged seven of the 18 accused persons after reading the advice of the DPP.
Those discharged include the only female accused person, Cynthia Chinwo, George Nwadei, Ekpe Daniel, Gabriel Ochi, Endurance Edet, Lucky Agwurum, and Finebone Jeffrey, aka Soso.
The chief magistrate said from the advice dated January 25, the seven persons were arrested and charged to court based on mere suspicion, adding that no prima facie case of murder had been established against them.
“It is a trite law that suspicion, no matter how strong, cannot take place of legal proof without concrete evidence to substantiate it, and as such, they were victims of circumstance and, therefore, charging and prosecuting them will be an exercise in futility,” Woke ruled.
But many have raised the question whether or not those so freed by the chief magistrate were actually innocent or they were beneficiaries of police’ poor prosecutorial competence.
The magistrate further said there were seven other suspects who had been arrested, granted police bail, but were yet to be charged to court on the matter. He said no case had also been established against them and ordered that they be discharged too.
Woke, however, said the DPP advice did not recommend that a case of murder should be preferred against Welewa, Okoghiroh Endurance, Ozioma Abajuo and Chigozie Evans Samuel. But rather, they are to be arraigned for “neglect to prevent a felony.”
He disclosed that the DPP was preparing more charges against the 11 remaining accused persons.
“Your original case file will be retained to enable us file information with proof of evidence for the avoidance of doubt, against Lawal Segun, ex-Sergeant Lucky Orji, Ikechukwu Louis Amadi, aka Kapoon, David Chinasa Ogbada, Abiodun Yusuf, Joshua Ekpe, Abang Cyril, Alhaji Hassan Welewa, Okoghiroh Endurance, Ozioma Abajuo and Chigozie Evans Samuel in the Port Harcourt High Court,” he said.
It is hoped that prosecution will be speedy and diligent, if nothing else, to serve the cause of justice for both the memory of the dead and their family members who are yet hurting from the tragic loss.
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