5 jailed 27 years each for kidnapping Osun speaker’s wife

[SunNews]

From BAMIGBOLA GBOLAGUNTE, Osogbo

An Osun State High Court sitting in Iwo yesterday sentenced five persons to a total of 135 years imprisonment for kidnapping the wife of the Speaker, Osun State House of Assembly, Alhaja Muibat Salaam.

Each of the convicts was sentenced to 27 years jail term. However, each of the convict would spend seven years in prison, as the sentence are to run concurrently.

The convicts are Chukwudi Okereke (40), Ogbole Ochijile Elijah (25), Okonkwo Lucky (33), Kaikine Mahah (35) and Nwadinnor Philip (30). They were arrested last year in Ilaro, Ogun State by the police.

They were said to have conspired while armed with AK 47 and kidnapped Mrs. Salaam who was returning from her shop in her Honda Accord car with number plate OSHA02 at about 8pm around Oke-Oyo Road in Ejigbo, Osun State on October 9, 2012.

According to the prosecution team, led by the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the state, Mr. Adewale Afolabi, the convicts had confessed to the kidnapping of the speaker's wife in their individual statements to the police during investigations.

Delivering his judgment which lasted for over an hour, Justice Moshood Adeigbe said the prosecution had been able to establish their case against the defendants, stressing that the confessional statements were clear that the accused persons met at Royal Hotel in Agbor, Delta State where they planned the kidnap, perfected it in Lagos and carried it out in Ejigbo.

Justice Adeigbe said the exhibits also showed that the five accused persons kidnapped Mrs. Salaam, forced her into a trailer and dragged her into the bush on their way to Lagos before the Ogun State Police Command arrested them.

"I hold that the prosecution have established their case and therefore found the five accused persons guilty of conspiracy, kidnapping and unlawful possession of firearms," Justice Adeigbe said .

Notwithstanding, the defence counsel, Messrs Sam George and Fredrick Komolafe prayed the court to temper justice with mercy but Justice Adeigbe maintained that the five convicts deserved the full punishment for their offence, saying the act was heartless and condemnable.

Justice Adeigbe ruled that each of the five convicts was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for conspiracy, while he sentenced them to 10 years imprisonment for the count of kidnapping and 10 years for the charge of unlawful possession of firearms.

Adeigbe, however, noted that each term of the sentence shall run concurrently since the counts arose out of the charges of the same act.

Reacting to the judgment, the defence counsel said they would appeal against the judgment, saying his clients were found guilty based on confessional statements.

He said the confessional statements were not verified, adding that the best option was trial within trial to authenticate the confessional statements.

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