Alleged Extra Judicial Killing: Appeal Court Denies Dismissed Cop Officer Bail
Justice J.O. Bada of the Court of Appeal, Benin Division Friday Benin dismissed the bail application filed by a dismissed police officer, Adeleke Adedeji, who is standing trial for allegedly torturing and killing a car dealer, Benson Obode in 2015, for lack of merit.
Adeleke and three other policemen, Oniyo Musa, Abena John and Henry Shobowale, who were serving in the Special Anti Robbery Squad, Lagos State, were also accused of withdrawing the sum of N330,000 from the deceased account after allegedly killing him.
It took the deceased’s family 63 days to discover his corpse at the mortuary of the Central Hospital, in Benin, where it was deposited and labelled as Benson Agwu.
Counsel to Adeleke, Matthew Oghogho, had on 13 June, in an bail application supported by two paragraph affidavit, urged the court to grant his client bail to enable him seek proper medical attention.
Oghogho argued that what the prosecution has against his client was stealing and that the case of murder was yet to be established.
This the court refused and adjoined its ruling to 22 June.
Delivering his ruling on the bail application, Justice J.O. Bada said there was no ground to grant him his bail.
He said: “There is no strong ground upon which to exercise our discretion in respect of the application of bail in favour of the applicant, Adedeji Adeleke and such , the bail application cannot be granted.”
Commenting on the ruling, Counsel to the accused, Matthew Oghogho, said: “The court has delivered its ruling. The opinion of the court is that since the trial still continue in the trial court, we should go back to the trial court and conclude it there.
“So the case is not over but what the court has just said is that it is premature to make application at this court at this stage.”
