One of the suspects in the April 5th, 2018 bloody bank robbery in Offa, Offa local government area of Kwara state, Ayoade Akinnibosun on Monday revealed that the police asked him to implicate Senate President Bukola Saraki.
Akinnibosun alongside two other suspects, Ibikunle Ogunleye (2nd accused person) and Adeola Abraham (3rd accused person) gave testimonies of how police extracted statements from them under duress at a Kwara state High Court, sitting in Ilorin.
Other accused persons Salaudeen Azeez and Niyi Ogundiran were in court.
The three accused persons also said that the principal suspect Michael Adikwu in the robbery incident was shot dead by one Inspector Vincent attached to the police Intelligence Response Team (IRT).
The police high command had reportedly announced that Michael Adikwu slumped in their custody and was rushed to the hospital before he finally died.
IRT which office in Abuja, is headed by Deputy Commissioner of Police Abba Kyari Akinnibosun, who is the first accused person, Ogunleye and Abraham in the Offa robbery incident were examined and cross-examined by their counsel Mathias Emeribe and Prosecution counsel Razaq Gold in a trial within trial on how they were tortured and threatened by the police to make confessional statements.
Prosecution witness Inspector Hitila Hassan had on Thursday told the court that the suspects voluntarily gave their statements under his supervision.
Lead Prosecuting Counsel Prof Wahab Egbewole sought to tender the statements as exhibit but defence counsel Mathias Emeribe objected.
Mr. Emeribe argued that the statements were not voluntarily taken, noting that they fell short of the provisions of the Evidence Act particularly sections 28 and 29.
At Monday proceedings, Akinnibosun said “Abba Kyari told me to mention the name of Senate President Bukola Saraki that he gave me the guns for the operations. But I declined to do contending that my life is at stake.
“He promised that they would reward me handsomely and set me free if I can indict Senator Saraki. When I disagreed they called some policemen to take me back to their cell. During this time my hands were tied to my legs in the back. Their children are in America and Europe you are allowing yourselves to be used as political thugs.”
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Akinnibosun added that he was the leader of Kwara South Liberation Movement mobilizing young jobless graduates for the Senator representing Kwara South district in the upper legislative chamber, Dr Rafiu Ibrahim.
The essence is to secure government jobs for the boys, he said. Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibikunle Ogunleye and Adeola Ibrahim gave graphic details of their horrifying experience allegedly in the police custody in Abuja.
During one of their encounters at the police IRT ‘theatre room,’ they said in their presence Inspector Vincent allegedly shot dead five Fulani men.
The trio added that it was in the same ‘theatre room that Inspector Vincent otherwise known as ‘Mr. Torture,’ allegedly shot dead Michael Adikwu for failing to indict them in the robbery incident.
According to Ibikunle Ogunleye “they brought the late Adikwu to implicate us and he said he had not met any of us in his life that is why Mr. Torture shot him to death. “
Presiding judge, Justice Halimat Salman adjourned the case to March 25th for continuation of trial within trial.
