A senior magistrate court sitting
in Lokoja, Thursday ordered that Senator Dino Melaye representing Kogi West
senatorial district be remanded along with two others in the police custody
till June 11, 2018.
Melaye who came in a hospital
stretcher was brought to the court on a six count charge that bordered on
illegal possession of firearm, criminal conspiracy and illegal transfer of
firearms, among others.
When the charge sheet was read,
the prosecution counsel, Alex Izinyon, while citing relevant laws said the
allegations levelled against the accused persons were too weighty and not
ordinarily bailable.
He, therefore, prayed the court
to remand senator Dino Melaye at the prison custody while the two accused
persons who implicated Melaye, namely Kabiru Seidu aka Osama and Nuhu Salisu
aka small be remanded at the police custody.
But Melaye’s Counsel, Mike
Ozoikeme while objecting to the prayer of the prosecution, swiftly moved for
Melaye’s bail, citing Section 97 of the penal code and Section 56 of the Kogi
state administration of criminal justice law which say the offences were
bailable.
He also presented two medical
reports from the national hospital which showed that Melaye is bedridden owing
to a spinal chord injury he sustained and said he cannot jump bail, stressing
that as a vocal senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he could not have
jumped bail.
The defence counsel also pleaded
with the trial judge to consider the bail application, saying his client has
been with the police since April 24 and was released on bail on Wednesday by an
Abuja magistrate court only to be rearrested by the police, adding that his
client case should be for prosecution and not persecution.
But the prosecution counsel, Alex
Izinyon swiftly objected the bail application, saying Melaye had earlier
escaped from a lawful police custody and that for the counsel to say he was a
vocal senator “means he is influential and can move and unmoved anything.”
At the middle of the trial,
Melaye suddenly woke up from the stretcher and looked around the court, and
minutes later, the doctor that led a medical team to the court rushed to him
and supplied him an inhaler.
The trial judge while giving his
ruling said the court had listened carefully to the submissions of both
counsels and concluded that the case was not bailable.
He, therefore, ordered that all
the three accused persons be remanded at the police custody while Melaye should
be allowed access to his medication, and adjourned the case till June 11 for
mention.
Controversy, however arose as to
under which police custody should the senator be kept, even as his counsel was
heard expressing fears that his client “will be killed”, if remanded anywhere
in Kogi State.
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It's so ridiculous how these old men act so crazy. What's with all the stretcher drama?
ReplyDeleteDino the best Actor 2018
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