Alleged killer of Usifo, Chidinma to testify Thursday in trial within trial

The alleged murderer of the Chief Executive Officer of Super TV, Usifo Ataga, Chidinma Ojukwu, will on Thursday this week, testify before a Lagos State High Court sitting at the Tafawa Balewa Square, in a trial within a trial, to ascertain whether she was pressured or induced to make a statement to the police that she killed him by herself.

Chidinma Ojukwu, a 300-level Mass Communication undergraduate, of the University of Lagos, is standing trial before Justice Yetunde Adesanya over the alleged murder, as well as for the alleged offenses of stealing and forgery alongside one Adedapo Quadri and her sister, Chioma Egbuchu.

At the resumed hearing of the matter on Tuesday, the Deputy Director of Prosecution at the State’s Ministry of Justice, Adenike Oluwafemi, presented her second witness in the trial-within-trial, which was ordered by the Court last week.

The witness, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, Olufunke Madeyinlo told the court that she was part of the team that arrested and interrogated the first defendant.

ASP Madeyinlo also said she has been in the Police Force for 33 years, and that on June 24, 2021, the Officer in Charge of the homicide session at the SCID, Panti-Yaba, Razak Oseni brought the first defendant to her office for her to write her statement.

The witness said that she gave the first defendant a statement form and a pen, thereafter the Deputy Commissioner of Police Adegoke Bayoade sent for Mr Oseni and he left the first defendant in her (Madeyinlo) office.

The witness added that after about 40 minutes, OC Oseni came back to her office to collect the statement Chidinma Ojukwu had written.

“Oseni collected the statement and went away with the first defendant, nothing happened and nobody forced her to write the statement, she wrote the statement herself”.

During cross-examination by Miss Ojukwu’s lawyer, Onwuka Egwu, the witness said that she shares her office with three other officers, namely ASP Gbolahon Jemiyo, ASP Gbola Alabi, and Inspector Kolawole Lukman.

When asked if it was after Jemiyo had assaulted the first defendant that her statement was taken, the witness said it was only herself and ASP Alabi that was present when the defendant made her statement.

Asked if she interacted with the defendant while she was writing down her statement, the officer answered in the affirmative.

“She said she wanted to eat and that I should get her something to eat and we sent for food and gave it to her.

“I did not ask her any questions, she wrote her statement herself. The only question I asked her was are you ok with the statement you wrote? She said yes, then I asked her to sign it,” the witness said.

The defence counsel also asked the witness if she gave a 10-year-old girl her wrapper to cover herself, for the night between June 23 and 24, 2021, she said she could not remember as it’s been long.

When confronted with the fact that the foster father of the first defendant, Onoh Ojukwu was also in custody within the same period, she said “I saw a man (Ojukwu) moving freely. Somebody that is in custody can not be moving like that.”

Justice Adesanya adjourned the case till October 17, for the first defendant to testify in the trial within trial.