The Director of Public Prosecution, kwara State, Ayoola Idowu Akande has argued before a Kwara State Court sitting in Ilorin, on Friday (May 26, 2023) that the documents presented by the defence witness, Abdulwahab Issa are, “worthless and inadmissible.”
Earlier, the witness, while speaking before the trial judge, Justice Adenike Akinpelu, said: “After the families of both the first and third defendants, Usman Adamu and Idrissa Adamu respectively came to our office, my principal, KW Yahaya and myself went to Correctional centre at Oke Kura to visit the above-mentioned defendants in order to take their brief. On getting there, the first defendant told us that he knew nothing about the case, saying that it was the military at Sobi Barracks that invited him alongside members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria, VGN for a meeting presided over by one Major Giwa Hamzah that Abubakar has a kidnap case in a Magistrate court in Ogun State.
“Later when we went to the Barracks to serve Major Giwa Hamzah a subpoena, we were made to realise he was no more at the Barracks. All efforts at reaching him proved abortive. We even demanded for his phone number but we were told they can’t release it. So we couldn’t reach him.”
“While preparing for our defence sometime in March this year, we learnt that the Abubakar Ahmadu was charged with kidnap and has been arraigned before a Magistrate court in Ogun State.
“My principal told me to go and confirm at the Magistrate court sitting in Abeokuta if Abubakar was truly having a criminal case. As expected, I confirmed he was having a kidnap case alongside three other suspects. So, I applied for certified copy of the charge against Abubakar and I was given.
However, the DPP raised an objection, saying the documents titled: “Incident report on the arrest of suspected kidnapper, Mr Abubakar Ahmmed (aka Abu) is inadmissible, pursuant to section 109 of the Kwara State Evidence Act as it failed to certify conditions for admissibility.
Arguing further, he noted that the second document, titled: “The Magistrate Court of Ogun State” is a worthless paper because it was not signed by the maker, adding that it is not admissible because the requirements for certification have not been met as there must be evidence of payment accompanying the documents and this, the defence witness has failed to attach.
The DPP, therefore, urged the court to discountenance the documents.
Responding to cross examination by the DPP, the witness admitted that the two documents he presented before the court were not duly signed by the appropriate authority.
The DPP also put it to the witness that contrary to the claim that the “Incident Report” was issued to him by Principal Staff Officer, EO Samba, he clarified that the rank of PSO is not native to the Nigerian Bar.
The witness, during his cross examination admitted that there is a disparity in the names on the two documents as one reads: Abubakar Ahmmed (Aka Abu) while the other reads: Abubakar Ahmadu (Aka Jega).
The judge, thereby, adjourned the case till July 7 for further hearing.
