A Lagos State High Court sitting at Ikeja has discharged and acquitted a police inspector, Kabiru Odejimi, who was standing trial for the alleged manslaughter of one Idris Bakare, who died after sustaining a gunshot wound during a police patrol operation in May 2023.
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Delivering judgement on Monday, Justice Modupe Nicol-Clay held that the prosecution failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Inspector Odejimi unlawfully caused the death of the deceased.
Odejimi was arraigned on a one-count charge of manslaughter contrary to Section 224 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
The prosecution led by Titilayo Olanrewaju-Daud alleged that on May 29, 2023, at about 1:10am at Oluyole Bus Stop, Oregun Road, Lagos, the officer unlawfully killed Bakare by shooting him with an AK-47 rifle.
The defendant pleaded not guilty, and the prosecution called three witnesses during the trial.
The first prosecution witness, Olukosi Abiodun, testified that he knew both the deceased and the defendant.
He told the court that after hearing gunshots, he found Bakare injured and heard him say, “Kabiru, you shot me.”
However, under cross-examination, the witness admitted that he did not see who fired the shot and did not witness the defendant pointing a gun at the deceased.
Another prosecution witness, Sergeant Adewale Abiodun, testified that the defendant reported that he had fired a warning shot into the air after being confronted by a group of youths who were allegedly throwing stones at a police patrol team.
The prosecution also called the station armourer, Inspector Akingbote Ayodele, who confirmed that Odejimi had been issued 30 rounds of ammunition before going on patrol and returned with 29 rounds.
In his defence, Odejimi denied shooting the deceased.
He told the court that while responding to a fight involving suspected cultists, he was attacked by three men who attempted to seize his rifle.
He explained, “One of them hit me with a stick on my right shoulder, and the remaining persons struggled with me to collect my gun. In the course of the struggle, the gun exploded and discharged.”
He maintained that the discharge was accidental and occurred while he was being attacked.
In her judgement, Justice Nicol-Clay noted that none of the prosecution witnesses witnessed the shooting and that the case rested entirely on circumstantial evidence.
The judge observed that the prosecution failed to produce forensic evidence, ballistic reports or investigative findings linking the defendant’s rifle to the fatal injury sustained by the deceased.
“PW1 stated under cross-examination that he did not see the defendant shoot the deceased; he only heard a gunshot,” the judge said.
She further noted that the investigating officer admitted that no meaningful investigation was carried out following the incident.
“There is no evidence of forensic analysis, no ballistic report, no evidence linking the defendant’s gun to the alleged fatal injury and no investigative findings connecting the defendant to the cause of death,” Justice Nicol-Clay held.
The court also considered the defendant’s account that he was attacked while on duty and that the rifle discharged accidentally during a struggle.
“The defendant stated that the men attempted to disarm him, and he was hit on the right shoulder with a stick. The gun exploded by accident. The evidence introduces the defence of accident,” the judge stated.
Justice Nicol-Clay emphasised that before convicting an accused person on circumstantial evidence, the court must eliminate all other reasonable explanations consistent with the innocence of the accused.
“The court is duty-bound to eliminate all other reasonable explanations consistent with the innocence of the accused person before coming to the irresistible conclusion that the accused person is guilty as charged,” she held.
The judge concluded that the prosecution failed to establish the necessary nexus between the defendant’s actions and the death of the deceased.
Consequently, the court resolved the doubt in favour of the defendant and discharged and acquitted Odejimi of the charge of manslaughter.
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