Billionaire
kidnapper, Evans who is still facing trial over the crimes he allegedly
committed, has maintained that his confessional statement was gotten from
torture by the police.
While
the police claims his statement was obtained under a fair atmosphere and could
have even be taken in the presence of a lawyer if Evans hired one, however the
billionaire kidnapper who was arraigned before Justice Adedayo Akintoye at the
Lagos State High Court in Igbosere on Friday, alleged that human rights lawyer,
Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), at the time, came to the Police station to see him, but
the Police thwarted the meeting by locking him (Evans) up in a toilet.
According
to Evans, his wife Uchenna had contacted the human rights lawyer in 2017 but
upon the lawyer’s visit to the Police station, he was told that he (Evans) had
been taken out for investigation. Evans who further disclosed that he heard
from the toilet he was locked up in, how Falana and the Lagos Coordinator of
the Inspector-General of Police Response Team, one CSP Phillip, exchanged
pleasantries upon the lawyer’s arrival at Phillip’s office.
Evans
who was all tears during his testimony, further disclosed that after being told
that he had been taken out for investigation, Falana warned the Police not to
come back and claim that the suspect had been shot while trying to escape.
He
further insisted that he was forced to put his signature to an already prepared
confessional statement by men of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, who had
allegedly murdered several suspects in his presence “in Saddam Hussein style.”
“Immediately
after my arrest, my wife called Mr. Femi Falana and he came to SARS.
“But
CSP Phillip told two armed policemen to hide me inside the office toilet and to
tell the lawyer that I was not around.
“I
heard Phillip greet him, ‘Good afternoon, sir,’ and Mr. Falana said he wanted
to see me. CSP Phillip told Mr. Falana that I had been taken out for
investigation.
“Mr.
Falana warned him that he did not want to hear that I had been taken for
investigation only to be shot dead.
“He
said he didn’t want to hear that I was trying to escape and then I was shot
dead. He told them that if I had committed any offence, I should be charged to
court.”
While
the case was adjourned till December 10, Punch reported that under
cross-examination by the prosecuting counsel for the state, Mr. Y.G. Oshoala,
Evans maintained that his statement was not voluntarily made
No comments:
Post a Comment