Desperately searching for Evidence:
Nigerians who witnessed SEUN KUTI assault a Police officer on Lagos’ Third Mainland Bridge to reach out to us, We will Not Reveal your Identity, give you 24 hours Police protection -Nigeria Police Force
…storm Fela’s son Ikeja home with suspect in handcuffs inside police vehicle, ransack building looking for incriminating evidence, seized musician’s wife mobile phone
*‘WE got a signed warrant from a judge to comb musician’s house’
*‘We are are requesting the court to further detain the suspect for 21 days, so we may grill him extensively’
“The Nigerian Police Force is hereby put on notice to detain Seun Kuti for only 48 hours, to be released on bail after then”-Chief Magistrate, Mrs. Adeola Olatunbosun, Yaba Magistrate Court
*BY TIM KAYODE/SPECIAL Crime Correspondent in Nigeria & GEORGE ELIJAH OTUMU/AMERICA Senior Investigative Editor
THE CRISIS facing SEUN KUTI, the last born of the late Afrobeat legend, Fela Anikulapo Kuti seems far from over as the Nigeria Police Force is openly requesting information from Nigerians who witnessed how the embattled Afrobeat musician slapped a police officer on top of Third Mainland Bridge, Lagos to come forward by reaching out to them. It promised police protection and wouldn’t reveal the identities of the informant.
The Nigeria Police Force, Lagos State command, has asked the court to detain Afrobeat musician, Seun Kuti, for three weeks over the assault of one of its officers recently.
This comes after Kuti was secretly arraigned at the Yaba Magistrate Court without his lawyers being notified. The Nigeria Police Force, Lagos State command has asked the court to detain Afrobeat musician, Seun Kuti, for three weeks over assault.
This comes after Kuti was secretly arraigned at the Yaba Magistrate Court without his lawyers being notified.
It was gathered that the Police prosecutors claimed at the Magistrate Court that the assaulted policeman was in a coma, and was receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital.
Meanwhile, the court is presently on recess as the Chief Magistrate, Mrs. Adeola Olatunbosun, said she was “studying the file.”
In a chat with SaharaReporters, a witness at the court said: “The Chief Magistrate Mrs, Adeola Olatunbosun Magistrate Court 1 Yaba took statement from the Nigerian police applying to detain Seun Kuti for 21 days, claiming the policeman he allegedly assaulted is in a coma at an undisclosed hospital.
“However, Kuti’s lawyer, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika countered that the police already stated publicly that the police officer trailed and went to Seun’s house and accepted N12,000 to repair his car. It also emerged that the DCP in Panti had gone to meet the Magistrate earlier before secretly moving Seun to the court without notifying his lawyer.
“They also accused Seun of not writing a statement, but Olumide-Fusika countered that he was there when Seun wrote a statement. The Chief Magistrate decided to go on recess to ‘study the file.’”
The Magistrate Court began sitting by 12pm, but Seun Kuti and his lawyers, who had got wind of the Police secret arraignment, were already in court.
Policemen storm Seun Kuti’s home, seize wife’s phone-Eyewitness
Our correspondents gathered that officers of the Lagos State Police Command on Tuesday, stormed the Akin Osiyemi residence of Afrobeat musician, Seun Kuti, off Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos for a search, seizing his wife’s mobile phone in the process.
According to an eyewitness who pleaded anonymity, the policemen took the musician along during the search, while they combed his apartment.
The eyewitness said, “The police officers invaded Seun’s home here on my street, Akin Osiyemi, and he was in the vehicle with them while in handcuffs. They stormed and searched his apartment. But they also seized his wife’s phone before driving off with Seun Kuti.”
Meanwhile, an impeccable police source at the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba, Lagos, told our correspondent that the Afrobeat legend was humiliated and threatened by aggrieved police officers while detained in a police cell on Monday.
“Some of my colleagues who were aggrieved over the incident took turns in humiliating and threatening Seun Kuti on Monday.
“The officers told him that he would have been dead if they were the ones he slapped during the altercation with their colleague on Saturday.
“He wasn’t even allowed to make a written statement until about 8 pm on Monday night, and he refused to give a statement after he was brought to the counter.”
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin did not respond to inquiries by our correspondent concerning the incident as of press time, despite phone calls and text messages to his telephone line on Tuesday.
Kuti, in a 12-second video clip that went viral on May 13, 2023, had assaulted a policeman on the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos State.
The PUNCH reports that magistrate Adeola Olatunbosun on Tuesday remanded Seun Kuti for 48 hours in police custody for allegedly assaulting a police officer.
The defendant turned himself in at the Lagos State Police Command, Ikeja, on Monday, following an order for his arrest by the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba.
He was later transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti and was, on Tuesday, arraigned before a Yaba Magistrate’s Court for assault on a police officer, an offence contrary to Section 365 of the Nigerian Criminal Code Act.
The prosecution led by S. A Adebese and Morufu Animashaun prayed the court to remand the defendant for 21 days pending legal advice from the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.
However, Kuti’s counsel, led by Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, prayed the court not to remand his client, stating that they (the counsel) were not aware of the remand application.
The magistrate after listening to both parties requested five minutes of recess stating that she needed to deliberate on her own.
She however handed her phone to the registrar to avoid calls from both parties.
When the court resumed sitting, the magistrate reading out her ruling said she would not rely on police investigation hence she remanded the defendant for 48 hours in police custody.
She said, “The Court has decided to override any public opinion and pass the judgement of the court.
“Following the remand application presented before the court, I am advising that the case file be duplicated and sent to the Directorate of public prosecutions within 72 hours.
“The defendant is hereby remanded for 48 hours in police custody to allow the police to conclude their investigation.
“After 48 hours, the defendant will be granted bail in the sum of N1m with two responsible sureties, a three years tax payment receipt that is verifiable; one of the sureties must have a landed property within the court jurisdiction.”
*Additional reports by THE PUNCH & Sahara Reporters
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