The principal of Royal Children International School, Asaba, Mr. Emmanuel Okafor, who has been detained at Nigeria Correctional Centre in Asaba, Delta state without trial in an alleged rape case, has cried out.
He alleged that the police have compromised their integrity to destroy his teaching career.
Okafor made the allegation in a petition to the Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice in the state.
He appealed for a review of the police investigation into the case that led to his remand in prison custody.
In a charge numbered CMA/106c/2022 filed by the Nigeria Police Force, the principal was accused of defiling a pupil, an offence he has denied.
SaharaReporters gathered that Okafor was arrested in March on the school premises by police officers attached to A Divisional Police Station in Asaba, for allegedly raping a six-year-old pupil in the school toilet.
But Okafor in the petition dated August 8, 2022, denied the allegation, alleging that the police investigation team led by Insp. Onyeoghani Precious arraigned and remanded him on trump-up charges.
The petitioner/Defendant told the AG that he had been in detention for five months without trial contrary to the remand order, adding that to make matters worse, the state Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has refused to give legal advice on the case while he languishes in prison “for an offence he didn’t commit”.
The petition obtained by SaharaReporters on Tuesday is titled, "Re: Case of defilement CMA/106c/2022; A case of likely frame up, compromised investigation by Inspector Onyeoghani Precious & team as it concerns the trump up charge of defilement levelled against Mr. Okafor Emmanuel."
Okafor stated that "on/about 4/3/2022, P.U. Nsolo (Mrs) Chief Magistrate (Special Grade) of the Magistrate Court 1 Asaba and via an ex parte Application remanded me at the Federal Correctional Centre, Ogwashi-Uku, Delta State pending the legal advice of the Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice Delta State”.
He added that the 14-day order had since elapsed.
He alleged that the magistrate had since unlawfully extended the said remand order because the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) failed and/or refused to give legal advice on the case.
Okafor said while he was still languishing in prison custody, he “applied for the Certified True Copy (CTC) of my case file from the Court and after going through it, I formed an opinion of likely frame up, compromised investigation and trumped-up charge of defilement”.
He pointed out that the Investigating Police Officer (IPO), Inspector Onyeoghani Precious and the team were not "Trained Specialised Children Police Officers" as required by law. This fact is evidenced in the Police Investigation Report dated March 3, 2022 and signed by DCP Dungus Ali Munguno.
"The acronym 'GVD' section being mentioned on the cover page of the case file contradicts the provisions of the law," he said, citing the child's Rights Act 2003 section 207(1).
According to him the alleged victim, Miss Olivia Okolie Chiamaka's identity was not substantiated in the Police Investigation Report. "The IPO failed to prove the legal identity of the alleged victim by not annexing the birth certificate issued by the National Population Commission which is a reliable document in proving the identity of the alleged victim.”
Okafor further stated, "It was observed that the alleged victim's statement to the police as evidenced in the document tagged 'statement of complainant', 'Police D19' dated 2/3/2022 at page 15 of the case file is a violation of the rights of the alleged victim.
“The action of the IPO and team amounts to subjecting the alleged victim who claimed to be a child to the Criminal Justice Process thereby violating the provision of the law. The Delta State Child's Rights Law 2008 vide section 197 provides ‘no child shall be subjected to the Criminal Justice system...’
"The IPO and his team were unable to provide any substantial document to show that the alleged victim was a pupil of Royal Children International School, Asaba and was regular in school and /or was in school on 29/2/2022 when the incident allegedly took place as claimed.
“There is every need to produce the school's attendance register of the class the victim attended on 28/2/2022 in order to identify the particular class teacher who permitted the victim to the toilet and also further identify the particular Janitor who was on duty at the school's toilet for that day.
“It may interest you to know that the said IPO and his team failed to take witness' statement from the alleged victim's class teacher and the Janitor who were on duty both at the classroom and toilet where the victim alleged the incident normally takes place between herself and I.
"The IPO and his team failed to take the alleged victim into 'Police Emergency Protection' after affirming that the victim suffered or may have likely suffered significant harm as a result of the alleged 'Defilement'.
"The medical reports affirming defilement as contained in the case file dated 3/3/2022 signed by Dr. Okonkwo E. (General Hospital Okwe), dated 1/3/2023, signed by Dr. Jude Uwaifo (Police Clinic Asaba) and dated 4/3/2022 signed by Dr. Faka O. Gordon (Asaba Specialist Hospital) were obtained unlawfully since the alleged victim was not taken into Police Emergency Protection as stipulated in Delta State Child's Rights Law 2008, Section 37(5)” which provides "no child may be kept in Police Protection for more than 72hours." He cited several other legal provisions which he said the police did not comply with in arriving at the report.
Pleading his innocence, Okafor said, "I am a disciplinarian that reasonably spank my students to correct them without subjecting them to any form of torture. This has always earned me hatred from some parents and applause from others."
While appealing to the Commissioner for a thorough review, he insisted that the trump up charge against him is a pure blackmail to destroy his hard-earned image as a teacher. "I call for proper and diligent prosecution of this matter within the arm bits of the law and not through cutting corners."
"It is upon these grounds your office is hereby petitioned to enforce my fundamental rights to liberty as enshrined in the 1999 constitution since the facts before you show that the investigation carried out by the IPO and his team was flawed with illegality."
He insisted that if his constitutional rights to liberty were not respected after unlawful detention for over five months in prison, he “will have no other option but to seek redress in the Court”.