The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) has failed to present the suspects to court on Monday, halting the trial of the suspected killers of security guard Barnabas Danlami and Arise Television news anchor Somtochukwu Maduagwu.
The eleven suspects who are facing trial on a nine-count charge bordering on armed robbery and culpable homicide failed to show up at the Federal Capital Territory high court on Monday.
The defendants however pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled.
The defendants are Suleiman Badamosi, Zaradeen Mohammed, Musa Umar, Mashikur Jamil, Suleiman Sani, Abubakar Usman, Shamsu Hassan, Sani Surajo, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu and Abdulsalam Saleh.
Prosecutor Adama Musa told the court during Monday’s hearings that the jail officers said they didn’t know the hearing date, according to NAN.
According to Musa, his team prepared for the defendants’ trial by bringing four witnesses to the court.
“On the part of the prosecution, we are in court with four witnesses who we went the extra mile to ensure are present; they abandoned their offices and are in court today,” he said.
Following this, Mohammed Idris, the trial judge, adjourned the case to February 10 and urged the witnesses to return to court on that day for the trial.
Recall that September 29, about 15 armed men invaded Unique Apartments, a 16-flat four-storey building in the Katampe area of Abuja, the country’s capital.
Arise TV news anchor, Somtochukwu Maduagwu, popularly known as Sommie, died during the robbery incident after she reportedly jumped from the storey building. Danlami, a security guard at the apartment, was also shot dead by the armed robbers.
Join Our Social Media Channels:
WhatsApp: NaijaEyes
Facebook: NaijaEyes
Twitter: NaijaEyes
Instagram: NaijaEyes
TikTok: NaijaEyes
