Kanu
By Amah
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The Federal High Court Judge in Abuja on Thursday delivered a landmark judgement rejecting the confessional statement made by Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB.
Kanu has been facing trial over alleged treason and been in detention for several years.
Efforts by the Federal Government to tender video and documentary evidence of the alleged confessional statements made by the defendant to the Department of State Services, DSS, hit the rocks, following objection by Kanu’s counsel, Paul Erokoro.
The defence counsel had objected to the admissibility of the evidence on the grounds that the statements were made under duress, resulting in the judge, Justice James Omotosho, to order a trial-within-trial to ascertain the voluntariness of statements attributed to the defendant.
Ruling after the trial-within-a-trial, the court rejected video recordings and documented confessions presented by the prosecution, ruling that they were obtained in violation of the defendant’s constitutional rights.
Omotosho held that even though the video evidence did not show that Kanu was coerced to make the statement, it fell short of legal expectations, as it was made without legal representation, which is mandatory under the circumstances.
“The statements are inadmissible in light of this omission by the prosecution,” the judge ruled.
“The objection of the defendant’s counsel is upheld. The statements of October 23, 2015, and November 2015, earlier admitted in evidence, are rejected.”
The trial was then adjourned to June 13, 16, 17, 18, and 19.
