Posted by By OLA AGBAJE on
Abdul Mohammed, (a.k.a Katako), driver to Muhammed, son of the late Head of State, General Sani Abacha on Wednesday gave graphic accounts of how the Abacha Killer Squad got the weapons to executive their bloody assignments.
Abdul Mohammed, (a.k.a Katako), driver to Muhammed, son of the late Head of State, General Sani Abacha on Wednesday gave graphic accounts of how the Abacha Killer Squad got the weapons to executive their bloody assignments.
Katako, testifying for the second day in the resumed trial of Lt. General Ishaya Bamaiyi told the court that the guns used for the execution of the operations which included the shooting of Alex Ibru was collected from the then Commander of Nigerian Army Cantonment, Bonny Camp, Col Jubrin Yakubu.
Answering question under cross examination, Katako said: 'We drove to Bonny Camp where we - Rabo-Lawal and Rogers met with the Commander, who was then Lt. Col. J.B. Yakubu.
'After they finished, he handed over a parcel to Lawal who gave it to Rogers. Then Rogers took the parcel to his car."
Pressed to explain the contents of the parcel, Katako said it contained guns.
It would be recalled that Rogers had earlier in his testimonies, told the court that former Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, James Danbaba had counselled them against using the weapons they brought from Abuja as they could easily be traced to the source.
When the counsel to the accused, Osahon Idemudia, pointed out contradiction between his new testimony and that in the aborted trial before the then Justice Ade-Alabi, now the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Katako pointed out that it might have been due to wrong translation as he wrote his statement in Hausa language.
However, the defence counsel insisted that Katako never drove Rogers and other members of the Strike Force to Bamaiyi either in his office or at home.
Justice Joseph Oyewole said that the court would not condone any delay when the lead prosecuting counsel and Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Bola Ighile, applied for adjournment of the matter till next week.
Apparently unimpressed by the request for the adjournment predicated on the non availability of witnesses, Justice Oyewole said: 'The court has taken judicial notice of the fact that the accused has been in detention since 1999.
'The latest position is contrary to what you had earlier told the court that the prosecution is prepared to go on with the trial."
Ighile while seeking the adjournment told the court that the prosecution still intended to call more witnesses to prove its case.
In her words: 'My lord, the witnesses are scattered all over the country. Some of them are outside jurisdiction. We cannot get them now. Those of them that are in Lagos, we cannot reach them immediately. Some of them have even died."