Posted by By Henry Ojelu & Amos Fajinmi on
Barrister Sam Bamgbose, one of the most respected and sought after lawyers in Ikorodu town, has been arrested by the police and charged with impersonation, after being in legal practice for over 19 years.
Barrister Sam Bamgbose, one of the most respected and sought after lawyers in Ikorodu town, has been arrested by the police and charged with impersonation, after being in legal practice for over 19 years.
His chambers occupies an entire building with numerous legal and paralegal staff on his payroll. His clients are mostly wealthy land owners, as he specialises in land matters.
At the Ikorodu police station, where the matter was reported, Bamgbose has made useful statement. He is currently facing criminal charges at the Ikorodu Magistrate's Court.
Speaking with P.M.News this morning, on the allegation levelled against him, Bamgbose denied that he is a fake lawyer.
He claimed that he attended Manchester University in the United Kingdom.
He, however, confirmed that the police had invited him on this matter, investigated him and levelled some charges of impersonation against him.
He said that he will prove his innocence at the court of law, threatening that he will sue whoever writes such a story against him.
The drama that led to the exposure of Bamgbose's seeming long hidden secret started two months ago when rumours spread within the Ikorodu Bar that he was a mere secondary school dropout.
Unable to contain the embarrassing rumour, the executive committee of the Bar association decided to investigate Bamgbose, who, over the years, has become an important member of the body.
In defence of himself, Bamgbose gave the executive committee a bag load of certificates he claimed to have obtained from several tertiary institutions locally and internationally. He tendered 17 certificates.
Bamgbose's bundle of certificates was certainly impressive, but it did nothing to douse suspicion because of some incoherence in them. He claimed to have got his Bachelor of Law Degree in 1988 from the University of Manchester, United Kingdom, yet by 1989, he was already called to the Nigerian Bar. By Nigerian standard, this was impossible as the Nigerian legal education stipulates at least two years for foreign students to take their Bar part 1 and 2 examinations before they can be called to the Nigerian Bar.
Several probing questions about his certificates were also thrown at Bamgbose. Not satisfied with his explanations, the executive committee of the Ikorodu Bar handed Bamgbose over to the police.
Ironically, before his ordeal, Bamgbose had headed a probe and disciplinary committee of the Ikorodu Bar which tried some lawyers for professional misconduct. He had also hosted the monthly meeting of the Bar. Last year, Bamgbose was appointed the co-chairman of the Law Week Committee. During the week-long programme, he was reported to have made effort to present a paper on the practice and conduct of arbitration.