Illegal Importation Of Firearms: Court Orders Prison Authorities To Produce Suspects’ Medical Reports
Justice Ayokunle Faji of the Federal High Court in Lagos on Tuesday ordered prison authorities to produce before him, medical reports detailing the health status of four out of the five men charged with illegal firearms importation by the Federal Government.
Justice Faji gave the directive that authorities of the Ikoyi Prisons, where the accused persons were remanded, make the medical reports available to the court before October 4, which is the next hearing date in the case.
The judge’s order was based on concerns expressed by the third accused person’s counsel, Paul Ananaba (SAN), on the health status of his client.
Also, the counsel to the second accused person, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), informed the court that he had formally communicated to the office of the Attorney General of the Federation, the intention of his client to enter into a plea bargain with the Federal Government.
The accused persons are: Mahmud Hassan, Oscar Okafor, Donatus Achinulo, Matthew Okoye, said be at large, and Salihu Danjuma. They were arraigned before the court by the federal government on an eight count charge of conspiracy, importation of prohibited firearms, forgery, altering of forged documents, and bribery.
The accused persons, who were arrested on January 21, 1017 at Nigerian Port Authority in Lagos by men of the Nigeria Customs Service, were said to have brought the rifles into the country from Turkey, using a 40-feet container, which they falsely claimed contained steel doors.
The government also claimed that in order to facilitate the illegal importation, the accused allegedly forged a number of documents including a bill of lading, a Form M and a Pre-Arrival Assessment Report.
They however pleaded not guilty to the charge.
In the charges, the federal government had alleged that in order to evade payment of Customs duty, the accused allegedly forged a bill of lading issued at Istanbul on January 9, 2017, falsely claiming that it was issued at Shanghai, China.
In the forged bill of lading, they allegedly filled “steel door” as the content of the container instead of rifles.
They were also said to have allegedly offered a bribe of N400,000 to an official of the Nigeria Customs Service attached to the Federal Operative Unit to influence the said officer not to conduct a “hundred per cent search on the 40-feet container with number PONU 825914/3.”
The prosecution also alleged that the first accused, Hassan, corruptly gave N1m to government officials at the Apapa Port in order to prevent the search of the container by Customs officials.
In the last count, the Federal Government alleged that the defendants had between 2012 and 2016 illegally imported several double-barreled shotguns, pump-action rifles and single-barreled shotguns into the country through Lagos.
The eight counts pressed against them border on conspiracy, importation of prohibited firearms, forgery, uttering of forged documents, and bribery.
The offences were said to be contrary to sections 1(2)(c), 1(14) (a)(i) and 3(6) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M17, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2014.