A Yaba Chief Magistrate’s Court yesterday Wednesday Sept 26th granted
bail to two suspects arrested in connection with the alleged murder of
Cynthia Osokogu. But the driver who was accused of driving the prime
suspect to Cosmilla Hotel, FESTAC, was remanded in prison custody.
The suspects granted bail – Nonso Ezike
(22), who is the younger brother to Olisaeloka, one of the alleged
killers, and Ezeaka Chinonso (27) – were arrested by policemen at Area E
for receiving and selling Cynthia’s BlackBerry phone.
Nonso’s lawyer, Mr. J. C Ngobili, told
the court that the accused was a student of the Federal University of
Technology, Owerri, and prayed the court to grant him bail in liberal
terms.
The Magistrate, Mr. P.A. Adekomaya,
admitted that although the offences were bailable, he pointed out that
the bail condition ought not to be too liberal in view of the
circumstances surrounding Cynthia’s murder.
He granted Nonso and Ezeaka bail in the
sum of N500,000 each with two sureties in like sum, adding that the
sureties must not be teachers or local government employees. He added
that the sureties could be bank tellers.
The third accused person, Gideon
Okechukwu, a driver, was however charged with eight counts of murder,
rape, robbery, conspiracy, administering a harmful substance to the
deceased among others.
Okechukwu had told PUNCH Metro before he
was arraigned that he only drove the alleged killers from the area
where the hotel was situated, adding that he had no role in Cynthia’s
murder.
Okechukwu’s lawyer, Bello, prayed the
court to also grant the accused bail, adding that he had been held at
the State Criminal Investigation Department.
The magistrate, who quickly interjected,
explained that it wasn’t within the jurisdiction of the court to grant
bail for such offences.
Okechukwu was remanded in Ikoyi Prison. The matter was adjourned till October 3, 2012.
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