The new Chief Judge of Niger state, Justice Halima Ibrahim Abdulmalik has ordered the arrest and removal of a police prosecutor from the Magistrate Court in Izom, Gurara Local Government Area for unlawful incarceration of an accused person, Musa Suleiman at the Nigeria Correctional Centre (NCC), Suleja on a First Information Report (FIR) unknown to the presiding Magistrate.
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Justice Halima Abdulmalik, was at Gurara on a familiarisation tour last Friday, while examining the number of Awaiting Trial cases of inmates at the NCC and discovered that the FIR based on which the accused was detained was not signed by the presiding Magistrate.
Further probing into the FIR by the Chief Judge on the issue also revealed that the presiding Magistrate has never arraigned the man in her court while the remand warrant was also believed to have been forged.
Defending herself, the Gurrara Magistrate told the Chief Judge that she has never seen the accused person in her court before, adding that, “I have not also seen this FIR. I did not sign it, I am not aware of it”.
Justice Halima Abdulmalik thereafter asked the police prosecutor, Inspector Mohammed of the Magistrate Court to explain how the FIR came about or executed to detain the suspect who has been at the NCC facility for months.
The prosecuting policeman was unable to give satisfactory explanations into how the FIR came about as he could not identify the signature of the presiding Magistrate, and this complicated his case.
Narrating his ordeal, the suspect, Suleiman Musa said he was arrested by the police along with some friends two months ago and dumped at the NCC, Suleja without being taken to court.
“All my friends have been granted bail by the Court but I have not been taken to court”, the victim lamented.
The Chief Judge expressing serious concerns over the use of the apparent fake FIR by the police to incarcerate innocent citizens, describing the action as an infringement on the fundamental rights of individuals which she said is, ‘unacceptable’.
She therefore ordered the arrest of the Police Prosecutor and directed that the second in command of the Police Legal Department, one Abdullahi Maiyaki to ensure the immediate redeployment of the erring Prosecutor from Court appearances.
Our correspondent however learnt that the arrest order of the Police Prosecutor by the Chief Judge which was with immediate effect by his superior. He was subsequently taken to Police headquarters, Minna where the state police hierarchy is said to be investigating the matter.
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