Barrister Yemi Mohammed, the lawyer to the Senator representing Kogi West, Dino Melaye has provided reasons the lawmaker failed to appear in court on Thursday.
The lawmaker was supposed to appear in court on Thursday but failed following a reported attack on him by gunmen suspected to be kidnappers. Melaye and two others are on trial for alleged gun-running. His lawyer told the trial magistrate, Suleyman Abdalah that Senator Melaye was attacked in Gwagwalada on Thursday morning, on his way to Lokoja.
He said, ‘’I learnt that he was attacked this morning in Gwagwalada on his way to Lokoja, Up till now, I have not been able to reach him. I don’t know where he is at the moment.’
Mohammed stated that the prosecuting counsel was not ready to open the case “due to the reason best known to them.” The officer in charge of Police prosecution, Theophilus Oteme, told the court that the prosecuting counsel had an emergency, which made it “extremely difficult to appear in court.”
Oteme, however, asked for a long adjournment till September 23, which was opposed by the trial magistrate who argued that “it contravened administration of criminal justice law of Kogi State as amended.” He adjournment till 9th August for commencement of trial.