The Kwara State attorney general and commissioner for justice, Mr. Kamaldeen Ajibade has said that the principal suspect in the Offa bank robbery, Michael Adikwu had died.
Ajibade disclosed this at the Kwara State High Court on Wednesday, when five of the six chief suspects, Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibikunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham, Salaudeen Azeez and Niyi Ogundiran were brought to court.
He said his office received the case file of the robbery operation on Monday evening and that the head of the police investigation team, Mr. Abba Kyari informed him that Adikwu had died.
The attorney general further said the police were yet to give details of Adikwu’s death adding that the five suspects brought to court could not be charged until an amendment was made on the charge sheet.
“We have the names of six suspects on our charge sheet, but they brought five suspects, we cannot go on with the case until we amend the charges because we cannot prosecute a dead person,” he said.
Ajibade also the case could not go on because the suspects had no legal representation and prayed the court to adjourn the case so that the charges could be amended and the suspects could get legal team to represent them.
The trial judge, Justice Halima Salman adjourned the case to Friday, November 30, 2018 and ordered the suspects to get their counsel.
It would be recalled that the Offa bank robbery of April 5, 2018 which claimed 33 lives, including nine police officers.
Following the incident, the police invited the senate president, Dr. Bukola Saraki for questioning over his alleged relationship with the suspects.
“The Senate President, Sen. Bukola Saraki is being invited by the Nigeria Police Force to report to the Force Intelligence Response Team office at Guzape, Abuja to answer to the allegations levelled against him from the confessions of the Five (5) Gang Leaders, namely; Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibikunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham, Salawudeen Azeez, Niyi Ogundiran and some of the other Seventeen (17) suspects arrested for direct involvement and active participation in the Offa bank robbery and the gruesome killing of thirty three (33) innocent persons which includes (some pregnant women and nine (9) Police personnel),” said the police in a statement.
But the minister of justice and attorney general of the federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami, said in a letter dated June 22, 2018 and addressed to the inspector general of police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris that neither Saraki nor the governor of Kwara State, Mr. Abdulfattah Ahmed has a case to answer regarding the Offa incident.
“For the senate president and the Kwara State governor, this office is unable to establish from the evidence in the interim report a nexus between the alleged offence and the suspects,” said Malami even as the police insisted that the duo were linked to the robbery on the grounds that the director of public prosecutions of the federation, in the legal advice, did not restrain or restrict the Force from investigating further.
