Sergeant Segun Okun and Corporal Adekunle Oluwarotimi, two former police officers who were accused of manslaughter, have been released and found not guilty by the Ikeja-based Lagos State High Court.
The defendants were released and declared innocent after being found not guilty of the crime by Justice Modupe Nico-Clay.
The defendants are accused of shooting and fatally wounding Emeli Azuike on January 11, 2018, in the
Mosafejo neighborhood of Lagos’ Amukoko district.
They were also charged with shooting a man named Chima Gideon in the buttocks, resulting in grievous bodily damage.
The prosecutor, however, was unable to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendants were to blame for the deceased’s demise, according to the judge.
After being found guilty of violating the Nigeria Police’s rules of engagement in an orderly room trial, the defendants and one additional officer, Sergeant Saturday Osaseri, were fired by the Lagos State Command on January 13th, 2018.
“PW3’s testimony only established that the bullet struck his buttock; he is unable to identify the shooter.
Justice Nico-Clay ruled that because “the court found that the prosecution failed to prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt, the defendants are discharged and acquitted.”
The defendants entered a not guilty plea after being charged with two counts of manslaughter and causing great bodily harm.