Just when Nigerians thought no lawyer will step out to defend
notorious billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme George Onwuamadike
a.k.a. Evans, a Lagos lawyer, Voice Olukoya Ogungbeje has taken up
the challenge.
Ogungbeje who heads Lawflex Chambers and is the Chairman of
Voice Vanguard, declared his interest on Wednesday.
He grabbed the headlines as he filed a fundamental rights suit
on behalf of Evans, by dragging the Inspector General of Police,
and three others before a Federal High Court in Lagos over Evans
alleged illegal detention.
Joined as respondents are the Nigeria Police Force, the Lagos
State commissioner of police, and the Special Anti-Robbery Squad,
Lagos State Police Command.
In his fundamental rights suit, the confessed kidnapper who had
boasted of enjoying the services of other professionals, including
a doctor that was treating his injured victims, is seeking a court
order directing the respondents to immediately charge him to court
if there is any case against him.
He is in the alternative, seeking an order, compelling the
respondents to immediately release him unconditionally in the
absence of any offence warranting a charge.
Olukoya Ogungbeje
as he appears on Facebook
In the suit marked, FHC/L/CS/1012/2017, Evans is contending that
his continued detention by the respondents since June 10, without a
charge, or release on bail is an infringement on his fundamental
rights.
He argued that the respondents ought to have charged him to
court in accordance with the provisions of Sections 35 and 36 of
the Constitution.
It was further argued that the alleged offence committed by the
applicant (Evans) are correspondingly intertwined with the
constitutional safeguards as provided under Sections 35 and 36 of
the Constitution.
In a 27-paragraph affidavit in support of the motion deposed to
by Evan’s father, Stephen Onwuamadike, it was averred that the
applicant has been subjected to media trial without any court’s
order by the respondents.
Onwuamadike further averred that the media trial and news
orchestrated by the respondents have continued to generate
reactions in both print and electronic media without his son being
afforded fair hearing before a court of law.
The deponent also averred that since his son’s arrest, all his
family members have been denied access to him while media
practitioners have been granted unfettered access to him.
The new suit has not been assigned to any judge and no date has
been fixed for the hearing.
Evans lawyer, who identified himself on Facebook as Voice
Olukoya Ogungbeje had been involved in controversial cases in
recent times.
In April, he filed a suit asking the Federal High Court to stay
proceedings on the forfeiture of $43,449,947 (about N13billion),
N23,218,000 and £27,800 (about N10.6 million) found in a flat in
Ikoyi, Lagos.
He also sought an order directing the Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission (EFCC) to furnish the court with a report of its
preliminary or final investigation on the source of the money, its
owner, and how the currencies got into the building.
Ogungbeje, in a motion on notice asked the court not to order a
permanent forfeiture of the money since there are claims and
counter claims regarding its ownership by the Rivers State
government and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and since the
Federal Government had set up the Osinbajo panel to find the truth
about the ownership of the money.
“This honourable court has the inherent jurisdiction under
Section 6 (6)(b) of the Constitution to order and direct thorough
investigation on the sources of the monies, their owners, the
owners of the Osborne Towers where the monies were found and how
they got into the building,” he said.
The case did not get anywhere as the money was later permanently
forfeited to the Federal Government.
Ogungbeje also filed a suit in Lagos in 2014 asking for the
reinstatement of Murtala Nyako as governor of Adamawa State. This
was after Nyako was impeached by the state assembly in July of the
same year and the speaker of the state assembly had taken over.
Again, the case hit the rocks.
Ogungbeje claimed the Assembly’s alleged failure to serve Nyako
personally with the impeachment notice violated his fundamental
right to fair hearing as enshrined under Section 36 of the 1999
Constitution.
After the court heard arguments from parties and judgment date
fixed, Fintiri, through his lawyer, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN)
urged the judge not to deliver the verdict.
The former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president prayed the
court to set aside all the proceedings conducted in the suit so far
because his clients were not served with the suit in accordance
with the law.
According to him, the court should strike out the entire action
since the due process of law was not followed.
Olanipekun, who is also representing Mammadi and the House of
Assembly, argued that the originating processes were not properly
served on his clients.
Source: NAN
Just when Nigerians thought no lawyer will step out to defend
notorious billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme George Onwuamadike
a.k.a. Evans, a Lagos lawyer, Voice Olukoya Ogungbeje has taken up
the challenge.
Ogungbeje who heads Lawflex Chambers and is the Chairman of
Voice Vanguard, declared his interest on Wednesday.
He grabbed the headlines as he filed a fundamental rights suit
on behalf of Evans, by dragging the Inspector General of Police,
and three others before a Federal High Court in Lagos over Evans
alleged illegal detention.
Joined as respondents are the Nigeria Police Force, the Lagos
State commissioner of police, and the Special Anti-Robbery Squad,
Lagos State Police Command.
In his fundamental rights suit, the confessed kidnapper who had
boasted of enjoying the services of other professionals, including
a doctor that was treating his injured victims, is seeking a court
order directing the respondents to immediately charge him to court
if there is any case against him.
He is in the alternative, seeking an order, compelling the
respondents to immediately release him unconditionally in the
absence of any offence warranting a charge.
Olukoya Ogungbeje
as he appears on Facebook
In the suit marked, FHC/L/CS/1012/2017, Evans is contending that
his continued detention by the respondents since June 10, without a
charge, or release on bail is an infringement on his fundamental
rights.
He argued that the respondents ought to have charged him to
court in accordance with the provisions of Sections 35 and 36 of
the Constitution.
It was further argued that the alleged offence committed by the
applicant (Evans) are correspondingly intertwined with the
constitutional safeguards as provided under Sections 35 and 36 of
the Constitution.
In a 27-paragraph affidavit in support of the motion deposed to
by Evan’s father, Stephen Onwuamadike, it was averred that the
applicant has been subjected to media trial without any court’s
order by the respondents.
Onwuamadike further averred that the media trial and news
orchestrated by the respondents have continued to generate
reactions in both print and electronic media without his son being
afforded fair hearing before a court of law.
The deponent also averred that since his son’s arrest, all his
family members have been denied access to him while media
practitioners have been granted unfettered access to him.
The new suit has not been assigned to any judge and no date has
been fixed for the hearing.
Evans lawyer, who identified himself on Facebook as Voice
Olukoya Ogungbeje had been involved in controversial cases in
recent times.
In April, he filed a suit asking the Federal High Court to stay
proceedings on the forfeiture of $43,449,947 (about N13billion),
N23,218,000 and £27,800 (about N10.6 million) found in a flat in
Ikoyi, Lagos.
He also sought an order directing the Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission (EFCC) to furnish the court with a report of its
preliminary or final investigation on the source of the money, its
owner, and how the currencies got into the building.
Ogungbeje, in a motion on notice asked the court not to order a
permanent forfeiture of the money since there are claims and
counter claims regarding its ownership by the Rivers State
government and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and since the
Federal Government had set up the Osinbajo panel to find the truth
about the ownership of the money.
“This honourable court has the inherent jurisdiction under
Section 6 (6)(b) of the Constitution to order and direct thorough
investigation on the sources of the monies, their owners, the
owners of the Osborne Towers where the monies were found and how
they got into the building,” he said.
The case did not get anywhere as the money was later permanently
forfeited to the Federal Government.
Ogungbeje also filed a suit in Lagos in 2014 asking for the
reinstatement of Murtala Nyako as governor of Adamawa State. This
was after Nyako was impeached by the state assembly in July of the
same year and the speaker of the state assembly had taken over.
Again, the case hit the rocks.
Ogungbeje claimed the Assembly’s alleged failure to serve Nyako
personally with the impeachment notice violated his fundamental
right to fair hearing as enshrined under Section 36 of the 1999
Constitution.
After the court heard arguments from parties and judgment date
fixed, Fintiri, through his lawyer, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN)
urged the judge not to deliver the verdict.
The former Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) president prayed the
court to set aside all the proceedings conducted in the suit so far
because his clients were not served with the suit in accordance
with the law.
According to him, the court should strike out the entire action
since the due process of law was not followed.
Olanipekun, who is also representing Mammadi and the House of
Assembly, argued that the originating processes were not properly
served on his clients.
Source: NAN
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