THE Magistrate Court of Rivers State sitting in Port Harcourt has ordered that the former Chairman of Asari-Toru Local Government Area of the state, Mr. Ojukaye Amachree, should remain in prison custody till May 4, 2016 when it will reconvene for the Director of Public Prosecutions’ advice.
The Chief Magistrate, I. O. Agbesor, had on Wednesday remanded Ojukaye temporarily till Thursday (yesterday) when it ruled on the issue of jurisdiction.
However, at the resumed sitting on Thursday, Agbesor ruled that he lacked the power to entertain the matter, adding that the charges against the accused were capital offences.
But the chief magistrate asserted that he was empowered by the provisions of the Criminal Miscellaneous Procedure Law of Rivers State, sections 3 and 4, respectively, to remand an accused person, pending DPP’s report.
Agbesor, therefore, ordered that the original case file be remitted to the DPP while the accused person should remain in prison till May 4 for the advice.
“Ordinarily, I would have considered the issues raised by the defence counsel, but based on legal position, sections 3 and 4 of Criminal Miscellaneous Procedure Law of Rivers State, the accused is hereby remanded in prison and the case file be sent to the DPP.
“The argument of the defence counsel lacks merit and legal content. So, the defence application is struck out. The original case file be deposited to the court registrar and be remitted to the DPP for advice,” he ruled.
Amachree, who is also a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, was arraigned in court by the Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Musa Kimo, for alleged murder of one Mr. Smart Soberekon in his (Amachree) LGA.
Amachree is facing two counts bordering on felony and murder of the aforementioned Soberekon.
Meanwhile, the counsel for the accused person, Mr. Ken Atsuete, described the ruling of the chief magistrate as wrong.
Atsuete, who spoke with newsmen shortly after the ruling, stressed that it was wrong for an accused person to be remanded without his plea taken.
