By Ovat Abeng
A Lagos based senior lawyer, Barrister Vincent Okafor who was remanded in prison custody by an Enugu Magistrate Court, has cried out, saying that the police were being used to witch-hunt him for doing his job as a legal practitioner.
Okafor bared his mind before another lawyer, Patrick Agazie who paid a legal visitation to the Enugu Correctional Centre Thursday, to see him and two other detainees, Theophilus Chukwu and David Okeke.
Recounting his ordeal before his visiting colleague, the lagos lawyer said he was arrested, handcuffed like a common criminal, arraigned and remanded in prison on a concocted three-count charge, simply because he was rendering legal services to the two other detainees who were labelled unknown gunmen by the Traditional Ruler of their community, Agunese Mmaku, Igwe Cyprian Maduabuchi.
The senior lawyer said that Chukwu and Okeke were arrested on an allegation that they gave false information to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), which was not true.
According to him, Theophilus Chukwu was arrested on May 6, 2024 in Abuja by men of the Force Intelligence Bureau (FIB), Nathaniel Bitrus and Ayuba Sunday and was charged for conspiracy and giving the police false information.
He said Chukwu was arraigned in court and remanded in Enugu Correctional Centre for three months, but released on August 13, only to be re-arrested at the gate of the correctional facility by men of the D9 State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Enugu, headed by one Nnamdi.
Okafor narrated further: “The Investigating Police Officer (IPO), Blessing Oguche, charged him for instigating local war and pursuing the Traditional Ruler of Agunese Mmaku Community, Igwe Cyprian Maduabuchi Nevobasi with dangerous weapon, such as guns, cutlasses and others. He was also charged for cyber stalking.
“David Okeke was arrested on the 18th of May in Enugu and he has not been arraigned in any court. He has been in prison for three months without any arraignment.”
Asked what gave rise to the false information, the imprisoned lawyer said: “What gave rise to the false information was a petition that we wrote to the Inspector General of Police (IG) against the Igwe. In the petition, we described the Igwe as self-styled Igwe. It was stated that the Igwe is a serial arsonist and that he tagged the men unknown gunmen.
“He said in a video that he burnt down one man’s car in Aroma Junction and wanted to kill, before the Governor of Anambra State stopped him. In 2005, his thugs burnt down the car of Alphonsus Orji. The IGP assigned the petition to the FIB. The police refused to investigate the petition. Rather, the petitioners were told to go and reconcile with him.”
Regarding his own arrest, Okafor said without any prior invitation by the police, he was arrested on September 5, 2024 from my office at 36 Ibezim-Obiajulu Street, Surulere Lagos and taken to Panti.
He said he was brought out from Panti by 6am in the morning the next day and Blessing Oguche, the Investigating Police Officer (IPO) from D9 State CID Enugu gave him a paper to write a statement.
Okafor narrated: I asked for the petition against me. They gave me a faint copy of the petition and a voice note that they claimed that I made. I told them that I was not composed enough to write a statement. We left Lagos around 1 pm and arrived at Enugu by 2pm.
“I was taken on handcuff like a common criminal to the State CID. There, I requested for a paper to write a statement but they refused. Their Oga, one Nnamdi said that they should just say that I refused to write a statement.
“They took me to Enugu Magistrate Court 1 presided over by Osondu Chukwuani. I was fettered. My handcuff was removed in the dock. I was charged for an offence they said was committed in Agunese Mmaku on the 13th day of August, 2024 and the court remanded me in Prison.
“On that particular day that they said the offence was committed, I was before the Lagos Magistrate Court in Charge No.-M/044/2024 between COP Vs. Odinaka Orji. The last time that I was in the village was on June 28, for the burial of my late Uncle’s wife. Since then, I have never visited the village.
He maintained that the police officers in D9 Enugu, Blessing Oguche and Nnamdi were being used to victimize them, adding that he learnt that another petition has been written against them.
“Their plan is to re-arrest me as soon as I come out from Prison, the same way that they re-arrested Theo at the gate of Enugu Correctional Centre after his release on August 13, re-arraigned and sent back to prison.”