Olusola Adeyemi V The State (2014)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report

MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI, J.S.C.

This is an appeal from the Judgment of the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division delivered on the 24th day of November, 2010 dismissing the appellant’s appeal and upholding the sentence and conviction of the trial Court. The appellant had been tried and convicted on a two count charge of conspiracy and armed robbery and sentenced to three and five years imprisonment respectively with the sentences to run concurrently.

The Appellant dissatisfied with the judgment of the trial court appealed to the Court of Appeal or Court below for short, which in turn dismissed the appeal and affirmed the conviction and sentence of the Court of trial. Further dissatisfied the Appellant appealed to the Supreme Court on four grounds of appeal.

BACKGROUND FACTS:

The Appellant was arraigned and tried before Justice Alaba Omolaye-Ajileye of Kogi State High Court on a two count charge of Conspiracy and Armed Robbery punishable under Sections 97(1) and 298(c) of the Penal Code.

The position of things put forward by the prosecution is that on or about the 16th day of June, 2007 at about 7.15 pm in the evening, the Appellant in conjunction with others at large went to Phase 1 of Lokogoma Extension, Lokoja and stormed the sitting room of one Raphael Olajide Sabo who later testified as PW1 and who at the time was eating with his wife, PW2 and their daughter in the sitting room.

The Appellant and the others who were armed with guns, on entering PW1’s sitting room introduced themselves as assassins on a mission to kill PW1. They demanded for money and when PW1 told them he had five thousand naira (N5,000.00) in his car parked outside, they collected the car key from him and went to the car and collected the money.

The Appellant and the others at large held PW1 and PW1’s family hostage for a long time while they ransacked the whole house searching for money. Appellant took PW2 to her room, demanded for and took her jewelleries, handsets and money. Also the appellant and his colleagues made away with the Honda car along with five thousand naira in the car, First Bank Current and Savings Account Passbook, a pair of glasses, jewelleries, handsets, some cassettes, personal and National Identity Cards belonging to PW1 and PW2.

After the robbery operation, PW1 and PW2 went to ‘A’ Division Police Station to report the incident and they were referred to the Police Headquarters where they made a report. Two months later. PW1 was informed by the Criminal Investigation Department (C.I.D) that some thieves had been caught in Abuja and brought to Lokoja upon which PW1 and PW2 were asked to come and identify them.

The Honda Halla Car was later recovered at Suleja by the Police with the aid of a confessional statement furnished by the Appellant. The car was released to the PW1 who entered into a bond to produce the vehicle whenever required which bond was tendered and admitted as Exhibit P1. ASP Obochi Christopher gave evidence as PW3 and he had led a team of detectives upon information that some suspects were arrested in Abuja and after investigation, two suspects including the Appellant who were found to be connected with the robbery incident in Lokoja were released to PW3 and his team for further investigations. Appellant confessed that he was one of those who came to the house of PW1 and PW2 to rob them. When the confessional statement was sought to be tendered by the prosecution at the trial, the defence raised an objection as to its admissibility on the ground that it was not voluntary and after trial-within-trial, it was admitted as Exhibit P2.

At the trial, the Appellant pleaded not guilty to the charge and the prosecution called four witnesses, PW1, PW2, PW3 and PW4 and tendered two exhibits, Exhibits P1, the bond entered into by PW1 to produce the Honda Halla and Exhibit P2 – the Confessional Statement of the Appellant.

The Appellant gave evidence in his defence and called no witnesses. He denied committing the offence and ever coming to Lokoja on the 16th of June, 2007. That he was residing in Abuja as an automobile mechanic at the time of the crime and was in his house at No.35, Road 35 opposite Federal Government, Gwarinpa Estate, Abuja on the 16th of June, 2007. The counsel on either side addressed the court at the close of evidence at the end of which the Court of trial convicted the Appellant for the offences of Conspiracy and Armed Robbery under Sections 97(1) and 298(e) of the Penal Code and the subsequent appeal to the Court below and now at this Court.

On the 20th day of March, 2014 date of hearing, learned counsel for the Appellant, Mr. Adewumi R. Fatunde adopted the Brief of the Appellant which he settled and filed on the 26/6/11. He equally adopted the Reply Brief filed on 10/3/14. Learned counsel for the appellant identified three issues for determination as follows:-

(1) Whether the learned Justices of the Court of Appeal did not err in law when they dismissed the Appellant’s appeal, held that the reliance and utilization by the learned trial Court of the evidence of the Prosecution’s first and second witnesses (PW1 and PW2 daughter, an individual being a person) who did not give evidence in the matter at all to convict the Appellant and sentence him to three and five years prison terms is one that bothers on typographical error, or mere observation or at most amount to a wrongful admission of evidence by the trial Court under Section 227 of the Evidence Act that did not influence the decision of the trial Court.