A court in Abuja has ordered that a brother to Senator Dino Melaye,
Samuel Melaye and three others be remanded in Kuje prison, Abuja for
allegedly aiding the Senator to jump off a moving police van.
The others are Amaefula David, Pius Inyang and Mohammed Wazari.
The
order for their remand in prison was made after their arraignment
before the Chief Magistrate’s Court, Mpape, Abuja on a First Information
Report (FIR) filed by the police.
The FIR linked them to the
Tuesday’s incident at Area One, Roundabout, Abuja, where Melaye
reportedly jumped off a police vehicle that was said to be conveying him
to Lokoja (Kogi State) where he was to be arraigned before a court on a
pending charge.
In the FIR, the defendants were charged with
criminal conspiracy, obstruction of public servant from performing his
lawful duties, abatement and assault on police officers, offences said
to be contrary to sections 97, 85, 267 and 173 of the Penal Code Law.
They pleaded not guilty to the charges when the FIR was read to them on Wedensday.
Their lawyer Nkem Okoro, from the law firm of Mike Ozekhome (SAN), applied orally for bail for the defendants.
The
Nation reports that the police objected to the bail application,
following which the presiding magistrate adjourned to April 30 for
ruling.
Melaye’s brother and others are said to have been
arrested by the police at the hospital where Melaye was admitted after
the incident.
They were also alleged to have “jointly conspired
and attacked a team of police officers from the office of the
Inspector-General of Police S.T.S FHQ, Abuja while conveying Senator
Dino Melaye to the court in Lokoja, Kogi Statein Area One Roundabout,
Abuja”.
The police also alleged that the defendants “whisked the suspect (Melaye) away to an unknown destination.”
