Miss Chidinma Ojukwu, the alleged murder suspect of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Super TV, Usifo Ataga, was having a sexual relationship with her foster father, Onoh Ojukwu.
This development was made public by a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Olusegun Bamidele, while being cross-examined by Miss Ojukwu’s lawyer, Onwuka Egwu, during trial within trial.
Bamidele is serving with the Homicide Department of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Panti Yaba.
It would be recalled that Miss Ojukwu, a 300-level Mass Communication undergraduate of the University of Lagos (UNILAG), is standing trial over the alleged murder of Ataga.
Miss Ojukwu is also answering questions to allegations of stealing and forgery alongside one Adedapo Quadri, and her sister, Chioma Egbuchu.
The DSP, who is the ninth prosecution witness, had informed the court how Miss Ojukwu transferred a sum to the tune of N5m on June 15, 2021, from late Ataga’s account to another account.
The Police officer had equally told Justice Adesanya how the handwritten statement of the first defendant was taken and how the second and third defendants were arrested.
Bamidele explained that after the arrest of the first defendant on June 23, 2021, her written statement was recorded on June 24, 2021.
According to Bamidele, “She started writing by herself, but because her handwriting wasn’t eligible, I told her that she should ensure that her writing is legible or write in capital letters.
“It was at that point that she said I should write for her, and she confessed to killing the deceased.
“She also mentioned how she had killed Michael Usifo Ataga and went away with the knife, phones, and Macbook laptop. We took the first defendant to the computer village with her laptop, and we located the phone hub.”
At the point the prosecution sought to tender the written statements of the defendants in evidence, Miss Ojukwu’s counsel, Egwu, objected to the admissibility of the document.
He said that she didn’t make the statements voluntarily and that the statements were obtained by oppression, inducement, intimidation, and under duress, and urged the court to test the veracity of the voluntariness of the statements.
But, the prosecutor asked the court to conduct a trial within trial on the issue.
This prompted Justice Adesanya to adjourn the case to November 8, for trial within trial.
At the resumption of hearing on the matter, the Lagos State government through its lawyer, T. E. Onilaja, announced its appearance, while Egwu also announced his appearance for the first defendant.
The second defendant’s counsel, Babatunde Busari, and of the third defendant, Miss M. A. Abia-Bassey also announced their appearance.
While being led in evidence in the trial within trial, Bamidele, told the court that the first time the first defendant was arrested, he was not there.
However, when being questioned during cross-examination by the first defendant’s lawyer to confirm that it was four people that were arrested when his team visited No. 25, Akinwumi Street, Alagomeji Yaba, he said they were three.
In the words of Bamidele: “That night, on June 23, 2021, the first team that visited, came back with three people. The first defendant, Chidinma Ojukwu, her foster father, Onoh Ojukwu, and an under-aged girl. Those were the people I saw.
“I was in the second team that visited the address that night. The first defendant was paraded on June 24, at the State Police Command, Ikeja. I was not aware that the first defendant and her foster father had an interaction with the Commissioner of Police’s Office since I didn’t go upstairs.
“Mr Ojukwu was rearrested on July 25 and kept in detention until August 19, 2021. Mr Ojukwu was not kept in the cell, he was kept in a protective room, and he received and escorted visitors at will.
“In the course of him staying with us, we stumbled on intelligence that there was an amorous (sexual) relationship between the first defendant and her foster father, and that gave the impetus that Mr Ojukwu was not sincere, and that he was aware of the offence that the first defendant is standing trial today.
“She was concealing the real information. We also established that the mother of the first defendant never approved the custody of the first defendant to Mr Ojukwu, and it was on this basis that we charged him to court alongside the three defendants at the Magistrate Court so that the court can decide if he can get bail, including one Babalola.”
The matter has been adjourned until November 10, 2022, for the continuation of trial within trial.
Ojukwu was arraigned alongside two others, namely; Adedapo Quadri and Chioma Egbuchu on October 12, 2021, on a nine-count charge over the alleged murder of Ataga, slammed against them by Lagos State Government.
Specifically, Ojukwu and Quadri are facing the first to eight counts bordering on conspiracy, murder, stabbing, forgery, making of bank statements, and stealing.
The third defendant, Egbuchu, is facing the ninth count of receiving a stolen iPhone 7 belonging to the late Ataga.
Ojukwu and Quadri were alleged to have conspired and murdered Ataga on June 15, 2021, by stabbing him several times with a knife in the neck and chest.
The incident took place at No. 19, Adewale Oshin Street, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos.
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