Justice G. O. Imadegbelo of the Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City, the state capital, on Tuesday sent a surety, Gajah Omayulele Lovely, to prison for failure to produce a suspect.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Lovely on a two-count charge of conspiracy to pervert justice and failure to produce a suspect, Richman Pere, for whom he stood as surety.
One of the counts read: “That you, Gajah Omayulele Lovely, on or about the 9th January, 2021 whilst standing as surety to a suspect, one Richman Pere (at large) aided and abated his escape by refusing to produce him for arraignment before the Federal High Court, Benin and failing to cooperate with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in bringing him to custody and thereby committed an offence”.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges, prompting the prosecution counsel, Ibrahim Mohammed, to ask the court for a trial date while the defendant is kept in prison custody.
The defence counsel, Marta Imafu, however presented an application for bail but was opposed by the prosecution counsel.
Justice Imadegbelo therefore ordered that the defendant be remanded at the Correctional Centre and adjourned till March 17, 2021 for trial.