A Lagos High Court has cited the failure of the state Directorate of Public Prosecutions to provide adequate legal advice or proof of evidence as one of the reasons it granted bail to Corporal Aremu Musiliu, a former police officer accused of murdering Comfort Udoh in 2015.
Court documents obtained on Saturday reveal that Justice O.A. Taiwo of Court 26, Ikeja High Court, ruled that in the absence of any legal advice or proof from the DPP, the court had no basis to determine whether a prima facie case had been established against Musiliu.
The case dates back to 2015 when Musiliu, alongside five other policemen, allegedly stopped a tricycle in the Isheri area.
The tricycle was driven by Comfort’s husband, Godwin Udoh, and carried Comfort and their four children, including a nine-month-old baby, as they returned from a church programme.
Despite Udoh’s explanation that they were not commercial passengers, Musiliu allegedly demanded a N2,000 bribe before allowing them to proceed.
When another officer at the checkpoint ordered the family to leave, Musiliu reportedly aimed his rifle at the tricycle and opened fire.
The bullets struck Comfort in the head, killing her instantly, while her husband was shot in the jaw and right shoulder.
Musiliu was dismissed from the police force on September 17, 2015. However, in 2017, he was granted bail without the knowledge of the bereaved family.
But the court ruling seen by PUNCH Metro quoted Justice Taiwo as saying, “It is my view that the offence of murder is indeed a serious offence, but the absence of any DPP legal advice or proof of evidence which would enable the court to form its view on the strength of evidence to be called and whether a prima facie case is maintainable against the applicant.”
Musiliu was granted bail in the sum of N1m with two sureties.
Despite the court’s claim of insufficient evidence, a legal advisory document signed by Taiwo Lambo, Assistant Chief Counsel of the DPP, clearly stated that Musiliu had confessed to firing at the tricycle, killing Comfort and injuring her husband.
“In this instance, it is evident that Musiliu intentionally killed and caused harm to the occupants of the tricycle. Aremu Musiliu confessed to firing his rifle at the tricycle, which injured Udoh and killed Comfort,” the legal advisory read.
Still struggling with the aftermath of his wife’s killing, Udoh, during an interview with PUNCH Metro on Saturday, pleaded for public support to seek justice.
“As I’m talking to you, I’m just managing where I’m living. They’ve given me a notice to quit because I don’t have money to pay my rent, which expires this March. My children are out of school. I want fellow Nigerians to help me,” he said.
Expressing his frustration over the case, he questioned whether the suspect’s police background was influencing the judicial process.
“Is it because he’s a policeman in uniform that they released him on bail to go scot-free? They didn’t even consider that he killed someone’s mother and left her children without a mother. Somebody’s wife left her husband,” Udoh lamented.
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