Court Orders Police Boss’s Arrest Over Journalist’s Death

A Yaba District Coroner Court in Lagos has ordered for the immediate arrest of an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Mr. Johnson Adeniken.

The Police boss is wanted by the court to give what the court considered crucial evidence in the inquest into the death of the former member, Editorial Board of This Day Newspaper, Abayomi Ogundeji.

The coroner, senior Magistrate Mukaila Fadeyi ordered the police boss arrest for ignoring summons to testify before the coroner inquest.

He said Adeniken’s refusal to obey his order was a mockery of the court.

The senior Magistrate added that Adeniken had refused to testify since March when he was first summoned and had not written the court to explain his where about or reason for his absence.

The court had on June 29 issued a bench warrant on the police boss for refusing to appear before the coroner inquest.

It would be recalled that the former Divisional Police Officer (DPO) at the Dopemu Police station supervised initial investigation in the Journalist’s Killing.

Ogundeji, a former Editor of The comet on, Sunday newspaper was killed by unknown gunmen on August 17, last year at Dopemee, off the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway, Lagos.

The coroner had declared that, because his summons was reported.

“ACP Johusou Adevikea is not above the law. Enough of this peculiar nonsense. It’s ridiculing the court. He should be arrested detained and brought before me to give crucial evidence surrounding this inquest.”

Chief Magistrate Fadeyi said he would not order the arrest of Mr and Mrs Suraju Azeez Folarin for falling to appear before him as ordered. The couple had claimed they witnessed Ogundeji’s killing.

Another key witness, identified as Tunnise, said to have been in the car with the Murdered Journalist the night he was killed, has allegedly been assassinated by unknown gunmen in Ogun State.

Meanwhile, the Chief Pathologist, Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Prof. John Obafunwa who carried out an autopsy on Ogundeji, has expressed concern over his safety.

Meanwhile a police officer who testified before the coroner inquest refused to mention his name and rank. He wrote it on a peace of paper.

“As a police officer, I have heard of killings before, but Ogundeji’s killing was news to me because of the manner he was killed. My hord, I was shocked,” he said.

The coroner’s inquest to unravel the circumstances of the hate Journalist’s death began on January 23, 2009 and was set up in accordance with the coroner’s inquest haw of Lagos state.

PIX; State co-ordinator of the Federal Government Committee on Amnesty, Dr. Timi Agary (left) listening to Air Commodore P.O. Gbujie and Group Captain E.J. Ozoemena, members of the committee, during a stakeholders’ meeting for Rivers State, at Hotel Presidential, recently. Photo: Chris Monyanaga