Death In Jail Awaiting trial inmate dies in kiri kiri prison after 6 adjournments

A man who was remanded in prison for attempting to steal his brother's money from an ATM has died due to the ineptitude of prison officials.
A 29-year-old man, Okenife Okeke, who has been held

Medium Security Prison on awaiting trial has lost his life owing to what a senior magistrate of a court sitting in Ijaiye-Ojokoro, Lagos State, Mrs. O.A Olayinka, called the insensitivity and lackadaisical attitude of the officers

Nigerian Prisons Service » ,

of the

for not giving adequate attention to the man whose case suffered

without

adjournments

reason.

The magistrate

officers should be held responsible for Okeke's death for their failure to produce the defendant in the court after his first appearance on April 3, 2014.

It was learnt Okeke

remanded in the

case was adjourned till April 10, but was however, not

court until he died of diabetes in November 11 at the prison’s clinic.

It was further gathered that on two occasions, the warders had adduced their failure to produce

'oversight' and 'a breakdown of one of the prison’s vehicles.'

The deceased, who was arraigned on one count of attempted stealing, was not brought before the court on five different adjourned

though the magistrate

warrant mandating

present the accused person in court.

The defendant was said to have been arrested for attempting to withdraw the sum of N25,000 from the bank

brother,

his

of

account

without the brother's consent.

But due to the

prison officials in

young man so that justice can be dispensed with, he has lost his life in the process. The magistrate further said she would have struck out the case if the suspect had been brought to the court.

The angry magistrate

warders further:

"If you (warders) had produced the defendant, I might have freed him given the weight of the allegation made against him. And possibly he might have got medical help.

I learnt that you bring defendants to court subject to whims and caprices of complainants."

In a letter dated December 18, 2014

to

addressed

and

Assistant Controller of Prison » , A.I. Gbadamosi, confirmed

demise.

The letter reads:

"I am directed to acknowledge the receipt of a production

issued from your honourable court requesting the production of Okenife

who was remanded in our

Okeke,

custody.

Sir, I regret to inform you that Okenife Okeke died of diabetic mellitus at the Medium Security

Kirikiri, on November 11, 2014, and a death report, dated November

2014, was forwarded to your court.

The death report was received by one Mrs. Bello, an employee in your honourable court."