A retired Police officer’s wife, Mrs.Taiwo Idehen, and her three children, accused of killing her husband Mr. Joseph Idehen, a retired Superintendent of Police, yesterday attacked, assaulted and threatened to deal with a journalist, immediately after their case before a Lagos High Court sitting at Igbosere ended.
Taiwo and her three children, Samuel, Michael and Ruth, immediately they left the dock pointed at a journalist from Vanguard Newspapers, who was sitting in the courtroom, and warned her to report the case well.
When the journalist made an attempt to leave the courtroom, Taiwo and her children rushed at her and started insulting the journalist again.
Samuel who is the second defendant said he was going to beat the journalist up, for replying his mother.
The third defendant Michael, while arguments was still going on, brought out his phone and took a picture of the journalist and said he was going to paste it online.
Michael called the journalist names that she was a bastard, while Ruth the fourth defendant said she was going to make some investigation concerning the journalist in Vanguard Newspaper and deal with her that by the time she is done with the journalist, she won’t be able to report cases again.
Samuel followed the journalist outside the court and kept hurling insult on the journalist that she was a low class, who was dressed tattered.
He said he was going to beat her up for replying his mother when she insulted the journalist.
The journalist then replied that she had no business with them and that they can not threaten or tell her how to report a case she witnessed in court. ”
I have no business with you and you can not tell me how to report this case,” She said the journalist had gone into the court to listen to the court proceedings when the incident occurred.
Earlier a prosecution witness, Mr Joseph Omorose, had told the court that he doesn’t know where the corpse of late Joseph Idehen, is up till now.
The witness who was led in evidence by Police prosecutor, Morufu Animashaun, the Legal Officer of the General Investigation Department of Force CIID, said the deceased is his cousin and that the last time he saw him, was when he visited Benin.
He said that Idehen died two weeks after his visit to Benin. Omorose, said “I received a call, that he was dead, two weeks after he visited Benin.
He explained that in Benin customs, when a man dies, his first son will inform the family of the man, of what led to his death.
The witness told Justice Adedayo Akintoye that when the second and third defendants came to inform him about the death of his cousin, he asked them what led to his death, but they informed him that they weren’t there when he died that it was the fourth defendant that was with him when he died.
Omorose also stated that when he asked them to go and bring the fourth defendant, and the next thing they saw was petitions that were written by the defendants to Police headquarters Zone 2, Abuja before they were later referred back to Alagbon.
During Cross-Examination by the defence counsel Mr. Kennedy Osunwa, said when he heard about the death of SP, Idehen, he asked the defendants to bring his corpse so that autopsy can be conducted, adding that up till today, they are yet to see the corpse.
When asked how many wives the deceased had, he said that he had no wife before he died, but that he had six women who gave birth for him.
He also stated that the only woman he knew as his wife was the first defendant.
When asked if he was present at the burial, he said ” It is from your mouth that I am hearing that he was buried.
In Benin Customs an elder brother doesn’t go for his younger brother’s burial”.
However, Justice Akintoye, adjourned the case until December 3, for the continuation of the trial.
The defendants are facing a five-count charge bordering on conspiracy, murder, stealing, use of false document and forgery, preferred against them, by the men of Force Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department, FCIID, Alagbon-Ikoyi, Lagos.
The Police prosecutor, Morufu Animashaun, told the court that the defendants allegedly committed the offences at the deceased’s residence, at 5, Odetola Street, off Merit Road, Alagbado, Lagos, on July 4, 2016.
He said Taiwo, who had divorced the deceased over 29 years ago, allegedly conspired with her three children to murder the retired senior Police officer in suspicious circumstances.
They were also alleged to have forged a death certificate from Otta General Hospital, Ogun State, which was used in conveying the deceased’s corpse to Aragba in Delta State.
According to the prosecutor, the offences are contrary to Sections 233, 365 (3)(d), 366 and 287 (5) of Criminal Law of Lagos State. All the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.
