Court Remands Three Monarchs Over Alleged Involvement In Murder Of Rivers DPO          

Mohammed Shosanya

A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has remanded the king of Igbu Akoh Kingdom, His Majesty, Eze Cassidy Ikegbidi, two other monarchs in the area, as well as other defendants.

Their detention follows the  murder of a former Divisional Police Officer of Ahoada East, SP Bako Angbashim.

 Justice Sika  Henry Apirioku,who denied an oral bail application by the defendants’ counsel, ordered that all defendants  be remanded in the Port Harcourt maximum correctional centre, before adjourning the matter till November 21 for plea and bail consideration.

The defendants,who faced several charges bordering on murder, conspiracy to commit murder, cultism, kidnapping among others, were arrested by the Police in connection with the killing of SP Bako Angbashim.

The former Ahoada East DPO, Angbashim, was killed in Odiemudie community forest by a wanted cult kingpin known as David Gift aka 2baba and his gang in September 2023.

When the defendants were arraigned in court by the Police on Thursday in the suit marked PHC/3208/CR/3023, counsel for the 1st to 10th defendants, Uchechukwu Igbegiri, prayed the court to grant the defendants bail.

The prosecuting counsel and acting Police O. C. legal, SP Enyiyepere Sikpi, opposed the bail plea by the defendants’ counsel, stating that the charges were grievous.

The charge sheet sighted by our correspondent contained His Majesty, Eze Cassidy Ikegbidi as the 1st Defendant, while two other monarchs, His Royal Highness Eze Kilvine N. Amugwo and His Royal Majesty Dr. Felix E. Otuwarikpo were the 37th and 38th defendants respectively.

The acting Police O. C. legal and prosecuting counsel, SP Enyiyepere Sikpi, told journalists outside  the  courtroom that the defendants were remanded following the prosecution’s opposition to their oral bail application.

He said:”What transpired in Court today was that the defendants were arraigned and their bail application was raised and we opposed it, the court seeing reasons refused the bail and remanded the defendants.

“The case is adjourned to 21st of November, 2023 for trial, the defendants were charged for attempted murder, murder, cultism and two other offences.”

Counsel for the 1st to 10th defendants, Uchechukwu Igbegiri, said he was going to perfect the defendants’ bail application before the next adjourned date

He added:”This is a high court and an application cannot be done orally, especially when the charges are serious like murder, robbery and cultism.

“So we have to go and file our bail applications for the accused persons, this is a High Court, a court of superior jurisdiction, so seeking for bail will be by way of motion and that is what the court has advised us to do and that is what we are going to do.”