By ABDULWAHAB ABDULAH & MICHAEL OLADEPO
IKEJA—An Ikeja High Court, Lagos, yesterday, admitted 20 photographs, containing horrifying images of the late Mrs. Titilayo Arowolo, allegedly killed by her husband, Mr. Akolade Arowolo, despite objection by his counsel to the admisibility of the pictures.
Admitting the photographs, Justice Lateefa Okunnu, said contrary to the argument canvassed by defence counsel, the fact that the witness' testimony had not been contradicted and since he was under oath, was enough for the admissibility of the pictures as exhibits.
Arowolo, who is facing a one-count charge of murder, was accused of killing his wife, Titilayo, last June 24, at their residence in Isolo, Lagos.
At the hearing in the matter, Arowolo's lawyer argued that the pictures tendered before the court were tendered as mere identification documents and should not be admitted as exhibits.
The lawyer argued that since the negatives of the pictures tagged I'd 20, 28, 3 and 15 were not produced in court, it should be rejected as they cannot be tendered in evidence since there was no foundation laid for tendering them.
Mrs Olabisi Ogungbesan, who led the prosecution, had argued that the defence can easily cross-examine the witness on the exhibits since he was still before the court. She asked the court to overrule the objection.
The court in a short ruling, held that since the witness under oath admitted to taken the pictures and his testimony had not been contradicted on oath, there was no reason for the pictures to be rejected. Therefore, same were admitted as exhibits.
The witness, Inspector Gift Eneche, had denied insinuations by the defence that the pictures were superimposed, adding that the borderlines shown on the pictures were mainly to differentiate his work from other photographers' work in the force.
At that point, Ogungbesan told the court that the prosecution has only four witnesses to be presented before it closes its case.
Vanguard Nigeria