Ataga: Absence of prosecution witness stalls murder trial
The trial of an undergraduate, Chidinma Ojukwu, for the murder of the CEO of Super TV, Usifo Ataga, stalled on Tuesday due to the absence of a prosecution witness.
Ms Ojukwu is standing trial before the Lagos High Court sitting at the Tafawa Balewa Square.
She is charged with stealing and forgery alongside her sister, Chioma Egbuchu, and one Adedapo Quadri.
On Monday, Lagos State Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions (DDPP), A. O. Oluwafemi, told the court that the case was for continuation of trial.
She, however, said the ninth prosecution witness, Olusegun Bamidele, who had not finished his evidence, was absent in court.
According to the DDPP, the witness sent a text message informing her that he was drenched by rain and unable to get transportation to the court.
She apologised for the witness’s absence.
Counsel to the defendants, Onwuka Egwu, Babatunde Busari and M. A. Abia-Bassey, said that the prosecution counsel had earlier informed them of the development.
They did not object to the adjournment of the case.
Justice Yetunde Adesanya consequently adjourned the trial until October 27.
At the last proceedings, on October 18, a recorded video footage of a confessional statement of Ms Ojukwu was played in court.
In the video, Ms Ojukwu, the first defendant in the case, denied killing Mr Ataga, claiming she did not know who murdered him.
She said she went out, came back and saw Mr Ataga on the floor of an apartment, in which she stayed with him, and then quickly picked up her things and left.
Ms Ojukwu said in the video that she left because she was scared.
On October 11, when the video recording was first played, it showed the lifeless body of Mr Ataga and showed Ms Ojukwu admitting to killing him.
Ms Ojukwu, an undergraduate of the University of Lagos, was arraigned alongside other defendants on October 12, 2021, on a nine-count charge.
Ms Ojukwu and Mr Quadri are facing the first to eight counts of conspiracy, murder, stabbing, forgery, making of bank statements and stealing.
The third defendant, Ms Egbuchu, is facing the ninth count of receiving a stolen iPhone 7 belonging to Mr Ataga.
The first and second defendants are alleged to have conspired and murdered Mr Ataga on June 15, 2021, by stabbing him several times with a knife in the neck and chest.
The alleged incident occurred at No. 19, Adewale Oshin St., Lekki Phase 1, Lagos State.
(NAN)
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