116 Synagogue Deaths: Church, Engineers File No Case Submission
The Registered Trustees of Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), and the two engineers that constructed the collapsed building belonging to church on Thursday filed a -‘No Case Submission’ before the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja.
The defendant in their separate applications told the court that having gone through the evidence submitted by the prosecution, that it was clear that they did not have any case to answer.
The Lagos State government is prosecuting the Registered Trustees of the church, the two engineers, Oladele Ogundeji and Akinbela Fatiregun, their companies, Hardrock Construction and Engineering Company and Jandy Trust Limited on a 111 count charge of criminal negligence, manslaughter and failure to obtain building permit.
It would be recalled that the collapsed building had killed 116 worshippers who had lodged at the guest house belonging to SCOAN.
At the resumed hearing of the case on Thursday, the defendants, who were supposed to open their defense, insisted that the prosecution has failed to link them with the charge.
The prosecution, led by Ms P.K. Shitta-Bey, the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), had in July, closed its case and told the court that the defence team had finished the cross-examination of the eight witnesses in the case.
“We will like to inform the court that this is the end of the prosecution’s case,” Shitta-Bey had told the court after the defence team finished cross-examining the eighth and last prosecution witness.
It was based on the development that the trial judge adjourned the case till Thursday for the defendants to open their case.
Justice Lawal-Akapo has however adjourned the matter till November 3, 2017 for the hearing of the application.