Posted by From Onwuka Nzeshi in Abuja on
Who were the alleged 'dignitaries" that visited Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Danjuma Ibrahim, principal suspect in the Abuja extra judicial killings while in detention at the Police Force Headquar-ters, Louis Edet House in Abuja?
Who were the alleged 'dignitaries" that visited Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Danjuma Ibrahim, principal suspect in the Abuja extra judicial killings while in detention at the Police Force Headquar-ters, Louis Edet House in Abuja?
That is the question bugging the Justice Olasumbo Goodluck Judicial Commis-sion of Inquiry probing the circumstances leading to the recent killing of six youths by members of the Nigeria Police at the Apo village, in the Federal Capital Territory as more revelations were made at the panel of inquiry yesterday.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Amusa Bello who was part of the initial police team that investigated the incident and who personally supervised Danjuma while in police custody testified before the panel of inquiry yesterday that 'two dignitaries" visited the suspect while he was writing his account of the killing and thereafter, Danjuma destroyed his statement and wept bitterly.
The police officer also revealed that contrary to oral testimonies of police officers detained over the incident when they appeared before the commission last week, their confessional statements were obtained in accordance with due process and devoid of any use of force, torture or duress as alleged by the detained policemen.
According to Bello, the principal suspect, Danjuma who was until the incident, DCP Operations in the Federal Capital Territory destroyed his first statement in which he had admitted seizing an AK47 rifle from Inspector Audu Suleiman at the police check point on Gimbiya Street and fired gunshots into the Peugeot 406 car in which the victims were travelling that night.
Led in evidence by Oluwole Aina, counsel to the Commission, Bello tendered to the panel photocopies of handwritten statements of the five policemen still in detention at the Federal Prisons, Kuje and gave a blow by blow account of how investigating officers followed the rules and ensured that the statements were obtained without any form of harassment or torture on the suspects.
The police, Bello said, were even liberal enough to had allowed Danjuma receive some two 'dignitaries" who came to see him while he was midway into it but the privilege appeared to have been abused as events later showed.
'On the 28th day of June, 2005 when we came to the office, DC Danjuma was confronted with the facts emerging as result of the interrogation of the policemen who were on duty at Gimbiya Street that night. The revelation of the men was that he (Danjuma) snatched the AK47 rifle from Inspector Suleiman Audu itch, which he shot into the 406. Then Danjuma was asked to react. He now said it was true. He was now asked to make additional statement to the first statement he had made the previous day.
'He insisted he would make a fresh statement, but after a prolonged argument he was asked to make a statement so long as it would incorporate all the things he said in the earlier statement. He sat down with a Commissioner of Police to make the statement.
Along the line he wanted to have the earlier statement but was denied access. As he was making the statement, he said he just wanted to make reference to the earlier one and this time the Police Commissioner obliged.
'As he was writing, two 'dignitaries" came and said they wanted to see Danjuma. As he was going he held on to the statement he made before and the one he was making. After he had seen those dignitaries and held discussions with them he now sat down in the room where he met with the visitors. Sat at the outer room of the two-room office. As he was making the statement, he now coughed, stood up with the whole statements and went into the toilet. When he finished with the toilet he started crying. I Tried to pacify him but he kept saying ‘I did not fire I will not accept' and when I had calmed him down I asked him for the statements and he said he had destroyed it. But unknown to him we had made a copy of that initial statement which he destroyed in the toilet," Bello revealed.
Under cross-examination from Amobi Nzelu, counsel to the families of the five deceased males Bello declined mentioning the names of the two dignitaries whose presence apparently led Danjuma to destroying his earlier statement.
When prodded further by Nzelu to make the revelation even in camera to the panel, the witness sought the protection of the commission pleading that he could not remember the names of the two visitors. This caused some commotion at the sitting as counsel for Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Orji Nwafor Orizu accused the counsel to the panel, Oluwole Aina of tacitly instructing the witness not to divulge the truth, as he knew it.
Not wanting to be drawn into the controversy, Justice Goodluck also declined readiness to get the names revealed to the panel in camera and told the witness to reveal the identities of the visitors publicly if he knew them or could remember them.