FG Amends Charges, Re-arraigns Melaye over Alleged Resistance to Arrest

This made it the 12th time the lawmaker would be arraigned by both the federal government and the Nigeria Police before various courts in Abuja and Lokoja, Kogi State. The operatives of the Nigeria Police had in December 2018 stormed Melaye’s private residence in Maitama, Abuja, and laid a siege to the property for a week, a development the lawmaker described as illegal and a violation of his rights. Upon submitting himself for arrest, the Police in January, 2019 arraigned the lawmaker alongside his security guard for allegedly resisting arrest and was subsequently granted bail on health ground. The bail conditions included the Clerk to the National Assembly writing a letter assuring the court that the National Assembly will provide Melaye anytime he is needed and two sureties with evidence of property in Abuja. The federal government yesterday took over the case and amended the charges initially preferred against the lawmaker to include speaking to journalists and making tweets on his social media handles while in hiding. However, the presiding judge, Justice Yusuf Halilu, subsequently granted Melaye a fresh bail on the existing condition.]]>