RiversRerun: Court remands Ojukaye Amachree in jail over killings.

A Rivers State Magistrate Court sitting in Port Harcourt on Wednesday remanded a former Local Government Chairman of Asari-Toru Local Government Area of the state, Mr. Ojukaye Flag Amachree, in prison over alleged murder.

Ojukaye, who is also a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, was charged with felony and the killing of one Mr. Smart Soberekon, in his LGA.

When the matter was brought before the Chief Magistrate, I. O. Agbesor, he (Agbesor) remanded the accused person in prison until Thursday, for ruling on the issue of jurisdiction.
The State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Musa Kimo, had dragged the APC chieftain to court on two counts bordering on violence in the area.

The charges, which were captured in a suit with number, PMC/750c/2016, read in parts, “That you, Ojukaye Flag Amachree ‘m’ with others now at large on the 11th day of April, 2016 at Buguma, in the Port Harcourt Magisterial District did conspire amongst yourselves to commit a felony to wit: murder and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 516 (a) of the Criminal Code, Cap 37, vol. II, Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria 1999.

“That you, Ojukaye Flag Amachree ‘m’ with others now at large at the above mentioned date, place and in the aforementioned Magistrate District did shoot and killed one Smart Soberekon ‘m’ and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 319 (1) of the Criminal Code, Cap 37, Vol. II, Laws of Rivers State of Nigerian 1999.”

The counsel for the accused person, Mr. Ken Atsuete, had prayed the court to strike out the matter and refer it to a higher court.

After the court’s ruling, Atsuete expressed displeasure with the decision, adding that the Magistrates’ Court lacked the power to hear the matter.

Atsuete said,

“We have made our submission and it is that this court lacks jurisdiction to entertain this matter. The crime which my client is accused of is a capital offence and the court lacks the jurisdiction to try the matter.

“The position of that section 319 stated that the magistrate cannot order the custody of the accused person pending proper information filed at the appropriate court, which is a High Court.

“If the court decides that he (the accused) be remanded in the prison custody between now and tomorrow, we frown on it. We are going to take an appropriate legal step to state our grievances on that.”

Meanwhile, the prosecuting counsel, Mr. Tubotamuno Dick, who was standing in for the complainants, Chief Ndokari Soberekon, expressed satisfaction with the ruling of the court.
Dick alleged that two persons were shot dead on the orders of the accused persons in Asari-Toru LGA.

He said,

“When anybody commits a crime, he should be brought before the law. Nobody is above the law.

“Today, we are happy that the law has taken its place and justice has been served. When a person is arraigned in court, the court would remand the accused person.”