Justice Binta Nyako, in the judgment, held that the prosecution had been able to establish the counts preferred against Kelvin Ezeigbe and Frank Azuekor, who were 1st and 2nd defendants, beyond reasonable doubt.
About two weeks after a Federal High Court in Abuja directed the Department of State Services (DSS) to transfer two convicts to Kuje Custodial Centre (prison), the secret police failed to obey the order.
A Federal High Court in Abuja last Friday convicted and sentenced two of the four defendants alleged to have kidnapped Chief Mike Ozekhome, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, to 20 years jail term each.
Justice Binta Nyako, in the judgment, held that the prosecution had been able to establish the counts preferred against Kelvin Ezeigbe and Frank Azuekor, who were 1st and 2nd defendants, beyond reasonable doubt.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, Justice Nyako held that the sentence would run from the day of their arrest.
The judge, however, discharged and acquitted Michael Omonigho and Momoh Haruna, who were 3rd and 4th defendants, of the counts levelled against them in the terrorism charge.
The court directed the DSS, which is keeping the convicts in its custody, to transfer them to a correctional centre.
However, a source told SaharaReporters on Wednesday that the secret police had not taken Ezeigbe and Azuekor to Kuje prison as ordered by the court.
“The court has sentenced Kelvin and his friend and they requested DSS to send them to Kuje prison. It’s almost two weeks now and they are yet to send them there,” the source said.
She held that though some of the counts against Ezeigbe and Azuekor attracted punishment ranging from death sentence, life imprisonment to at least 10 years jail term, she had found that the accused had been remorseful of their criminal act.
She said she also found that they had been in custody for about 10 years from the day of their arrest.
They were accused of committing acts of terrorism, contrary to Sections 1, 8, and 10 of the Terrorism Prevention Act, 2011.
They were alleged to have kidnapped Mr. Ozekhome on August 23, 2013, at Iruekpen on his way to Iviukwe in Agenebode, Edo State.
Ozekhome was held in captivity for about three weeks before his release allegedly following the payment of a ransom of N28 million.
They were also accused of kidnapping Delta State Commissioner for Higher Education, Prof Hope Eghagha; Attanasius Ugbme, and his friend, Emmanuel Maka Omorogbe, and killing five policemen and two prison officials.
The defendants were also alleged to have compelled Eghagha to pay N7 million. Ugbome reportedly paid N20 million, and Omorogbe reportedly paid N3.5 million.
The five police officers allegedly killed were Paul Ajaka, Sunday Ewanshiha, Michael Akpada, Bakary Ekong, and Innocent Odoh.
They also allegedly killed Lawrence Edora and Oyibo Okoye who were prison officers and made away with their service rifles.
The four suspects were refused bail filed on their behalf by their lawyer, Bala Dakum.
While Ezeigbe and Azuekor were held at the facility of the Department of State Service, Omonigho and Haruna were held at Kuje Correctional Centre, Abuja.