Homicide: Court Remands Lagos Lawyer in Kirikiri Prison

Posted by African Examiner Latest Headlines, News Across Nigeria, News From The State Wednesday, May 9th, 2018

(AFRICAN EXAMINER) – A Lagos Magistrate Court in Yaba, Wednesday ordered the remand of a suspect who is a legal Practitioner, Udeme Odibifor over alleged stabbing of her husband Otike, to death in Kikiri prison.

At the hearing, the Chief Magistrate, Kikelomo Ayeye, rejected the request by the suspect’s Lawyer Oluseye Bamijoko, for Ikoyi prison and ordered the 48-years old suspect to be remanded in Kirikiri.

Earlier, the Officer in Charge of Legal Department of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) Panti, CSP Effiong Asuquo, told the court that the accused committed the offence last Thursday, May 3, 2018 at Diamond Estate, Sangotedo, Lekki.

Asuquo alleged that the accused stabbed her husband with a knife, spilling his intestines before proceeding to cut off his genitals.

The offence he argued contravenes Sections 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, which prescribes death sentence.

He also alleged that the accused tried to commit suicide by inflicting injuries on herself, before she was rescued and rushed to the hospital.

Consequently, CSP Asuquo prayed the court to remand her in prison for the next 30 days.

Asquo informed the court that the case file had been duplicated and sent to the State Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) to obtain legal advice.

However, Counsel to the accused, Bamijoko, asked the court to remand the accused at the Ikoyi Prisons instead of Kirikiri prisons to allow neurologists and endocrinologists attend to her thyroid disease.

The counsel told the court that the accused was currently undergoing psychiatric and private evaluation.

He therefore pleaded that his client be remanded at Ikoyi prison since the specialists attending to her reside between Ikoyi and Victoria Island axis.

Magistrate Ayeye declined the request and subsequently ordered Odibifor remanded in Kirikiri prison.

She held that since Ikoyi prison did not have facilities for female inmates, the accused should be remanded at Kirikiri.

She also ruled “Being at Kirikiri does not stop the specialists and endocrinologists from visiting and it’s sad that the Ikoyi prison lacks facilities for the female gender”’

However, Magistrate Ayeye ordered that the suspect should be given privacy when interacting with her counsel or family members without interruption from third party

In addition, the Chief magistrate ordered that the burial of the suspect’s late husband which has been scheduled for Thursday, May 10, 2018 be suspended till final investigation was concluded.