Daily Independent Online.
*
Thursday, June 17, 2004.
Tidjani
for trial in 11 states
By Maxwell Oditta
Senior
Correspondent, Lagos
Trans-border suspected
brigand, Hammani Tidjani, is to be charged to court in 11 states and the
Federal Capital, Abuja.
A credible police
source said the legal proceedings would be instituted against him in high
courts in each state where he committed an offence.
Reminded that a court
in Abeokuta said it had no jurisdiction over the case, the source explained
that Tidjani’s presentation at that court was to enable the court remand
him in police custody. “He will not face trial only in that state,”
he said
He argued that legal
jurisdiction dictates that if the armed robbery suspect committed offence in
all the over 774 councils in the country, he should undergo trial in each of
them to satisfy all elements of the law.
According to him, at
the end of the day Tidjani would have been arraigned in High Courts in Lagos,
Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Edo, Delta, Anambra, Niger, Sokoto and Zamfara
States.
He attributed the
seeming delay in the promised accelerated trial to the unfolding complexity of
the case.
“When we
promised accelerated trial, we did so not knowing the degree of complexity of
his case. There are no less than 100 incidents attached to Tidjani in Lagos
State alone”, he said.
On fresh charges
against Tidjani, the source stated that so far no fresh charges have been
brought, but the possibility of doing so cannot be ruled out as his case
progresses.
The police are working
on fresh counts and he will be charged with them once there is enough evidence.
Tidjani was first arraigned at an Abeokuta High Court on
December 12 last year on counts of conspiracy, armed robbery, murder,
kidnapping and stolen property.
