On Monday in Abuja, two legal practitioners, Emmanuel Onuoha and C.O. Adie, displayed a complete disregard for caution as they violently attacked Mrs. Oluwatayo Adeyemi, the wife of another lawyer, within the premises of a court. The incident occurred due to a dispute over media coverage of a criminal case. Onuoha and Adie had been representing Henry Onyinyechi Nwosu, a lawyer, and Pastor Jonathan Onuoha, who were both facing charges of conspiracy and forgery of documents related to a plot of land in Zone 6, Dutse Alhaji District of Abuja. These charges were brought against them by Barrister Gbenga Adeyemi, on behalf of the landowner, Mr. Royson Obijuru, a retired Director of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
During their arraignment at Chief Magistrate Court One, the defendants pleaded not guilty. The prosecution counsel, Olaolu Alao, opposed their bail, but Chief Magistrate Muinat Folasade Oyekan granted them bail with various terms and conditions. These conditions included a bail amount of N500,000 each and two sureties each in the same sum. The sureties were required to be residents within the jurisdiction of the court and civil servants not below Grade Level 16. Additionally, the sureties had to provide an affidavit of means. The two accused individuals were to be remanded in prison custody until they could fulfill the bail conditions.
Trouble arose when Onuoha, who was representing Pastor Jonathan Onuoha, noticed the presence of media personnel within the court premises and confronted them, objecting to their coverage of his client’s arraignment without his approval. The media personnel stood their ground, asserting that they didn’t require his approval to carry out their professional duties. Enraged, Onuoha verbally abused the journalists and threatened them, but they remained steadfast in their position.
Subsequently, Onuoha hurried to the courtroom and reported the presence of the journalists to Chief Magistrate Oyekan, who summoned them, along with his police orderly, to the court room. In response to the counsel’s protest, Magistrate Oyekan directed the journalists to leave the court premises and conduct their work outside since they had not obtained permission to cover the arraignment.
Outside the court premises, the two lawyers, determined to shield their clients from being recorded by electronic media, continued their assault on the journalists. Suspecting that Mrs. Oluwatayo Adeyemi, the nominal complainant’s wife, might have been responsible for the journalists’ presence, the enraged lawyers mercilessly attacked her, repeatedly striking her face and causing injuries and bleeding.
Mrs. Adeyemi, who suffered from the brutal assault, was subsequently taken to Zone 3 Divisional Police Station and then transferred to Wuse General Hospital for medical treatment. As of now, the two lawyers remain in police custody, while their victim continues to receive medical care at a nearby hospital.
Meanwhile, the court has scheduled June 7 for the hearing of all pending motions related to the case and the continuation of the trial.
