Six persons were on Monday arraigned before the Tinubu Chief Magistrate Court, Lagos State following an attack on a construction engineering company in the Araromi Ale area of the Lagos-Badagry Expressway.
The accused persons identified as Ayuba Olabimtan, Moses Mathew Balogun, Ajose Ademola, Thomas Idowu Akilapa l, Johua Ajose and Keke Sunday were arrested following a petition to the Deputy Inspector General in charge of D Department of the Nigeria Police Force, Area 10, Abuja.
The petitioners had called on the police boss to save them from the arrested suspects and others now at large despite a court judgement, a warrant of possession and a Certificate of Occupancy in their favour.
The arrest and arraignment of the suspects are contrary to reports that the accused persons were abducted by gunmen who accompanied land grabbers to the Lagos community last weekend where it was alleged that the engineering company and an estate agent, Alhaji Mutairu Owoeye abducted the accused persons.
The Prosecutor, Fadipe Abraham, told the court presided over by Mrs KB Ayeye that the arrested persons and others at large forcefully gained entrance into the engineering company’s premises, an action which is described as contempt of court order.
In a 3-count charge against them, the accused person were said to have maliciously damaged the properties of the petitioner and threatened the lives of their workers.
ALSO READ FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNEÂ
The charge against the accused persons read: “That you Ayuba Olabimtan, m, Moses Mathew Balogun, m, Ajose Ademola, m, Thomas Idowu Akilapa, m , Johua Ajose, m, Keke Sunday, m and others at large sometime between Friday the 17th day of February 2017 and 11th November 22 at Imowo, Badagry Road in the Lagos Magisterial District did conspire among yourselves to commit felony to with: malicious damage, contempt of court, forcible entry and conduct likely to breach public peace, an offence punishable under Section 411 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria 2015.
“That you Ayuba Olabimtan, m , Moses Mathew Balogun, m, Ajose Ademola, m, Thomas Idowu Akilapa, m l, Johua Ajose, m, Keke Sunday, m and others at large on the same date, time and place in the aforementioned Magisterial District did commit contempt of court by forcefully entering and retaking the possession of a land, lying and situated at Araromi Ale village, which was in the possession of Advance Engineering Construction Company and thereby committed an offence, punishable under section 104 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State 2015.”
The accused persons were also said “to have on the 10th and 11th of November 2022 at about 10:06 am at Imowo Badagry Road in the Lagos Magisterial District did in a manner, likely to cause a breach of public peace and forcefully entering a land which is actual possession of Messrs Advance Engineering Construction Company and threaten the lives of the staff on the site and damaged some valuable properties, which cost is yet to be estimated and thereby committed an offence, punishable under Section 52 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria 2015.
The accused persons are to be remanded in the Ikoyi Correctional Centre pending when they will meet the bail condition of two sureties and N500,000 each.
and then