Court admits Evans’ confessional statement in multiple abductions trial

A Lagos High Court sitting in Igbosere on Wednesday admitted the confessional statement of suspected kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans, as exhibit during the resumption of his trial for multiple cases of kidnapping.

He is standing trial on two separate charges of conspiracy to kidnap, kidnapping and attempted murder before Justice Adedayo Akintoye.

His co-accused persons in one of the charges are – Joseph Emeka, Ugochukwu Nwachukwu and Victor Aduba.

The judge, while ruling on Evans’ confessional statement, held “that the test of voluntariness of a statement cannot be determined by a procedural law relied upon by the defendant but by the provisions of the evidence act which is the instant law that regulates the admissibility of a statement.”

According to Justice Akintoye, the defendant admitted during the trial –within- trial that his confessional statements were not made under duress.

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She said: “Once the basic requirements in obtaining statements from an accused person have been followed and no injustice can be said to have been caused to the defendant, the rules of evidence require that the statement will be relevant and admissible in law.

“I consider the allegations of duress made by the defendant as an afterthought. However, none of the allegations made by the defendant was proved by him.

“Having considered the evidence before the court and having the opportunity to hear the witnesses, I have no reason to doubt the evidence of the prosecution witnesses.

“I therefore hold that the prosecution has established the voluntariness of the statement sought to be tendered.

“Therefore, the arguments of the learned counsel for the first defendant in these issues are hereby discountenanced.

“The end result is that the five-page statement of the first defendant sought to be tendered as the exhibit is hereby admitted as exhibit.”

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