Alhaji G. Salimonu & Anor.v. The State (1972)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

FATAYI-WILLIAMS, J.S.C.

The appellants were charged and tried in the High Court of Lagos State by Odesanya, J., and a twelve -man jury for the murder of one Tajudeen Aremu at Olojowon Street, Badiya, Ijora, on or about the 15th day of December, 1970. They were convicted of the offence charged and sentenced to death. Their appeals to this court against that judgment were dismissed on 3rd February, 1972. We now give our reasons for doing so.

According to the prosecution, Yekini Omotosho (2nd P/W) and Tajudeen Aremu (the deceased) both lived at No. 30 Olodan Street, Badiya in Ijora at the material time. They were half-brothers and were also both butchers. At about four o’clock in the morning of 15th December, 1970, Yekini Omotosho left home for his place of work. Before he left, he told Tajudeen Aremu to lock the door of the room at Olodan Street and meet him later. While walking along Olojowon Street where both accused lived, Yekini Omotosho heard some people shouting “thief, thief” some distance behind him. There was moonlight at that early hour of the morning. As a result, he walked back to where the shouting was coming from. On getting to the place, he saw Alhaji Salimonu (1st accused) in a pair of black pants and Saka Ayinla (2nd accused) also in a pair of pants. Each of the accused was holding a matchet and was attacking Tajudeen Aremu with it while he (Tajudeen Aremu) was shouting that he was not a thief and that he was only on his way to the abattoir where he worked. Yekinni Omotosho asked the 1st accused why he was attacking Tajudeen Aremu. The 1st accused replied that if he had not said that Tajudeen Aremu was his brother he would have cut him up and thrown the pieces into the nearby swamp. He further said that he was not afraid of what the Government might do about the incident. While all these altercations were going on, the 2nd accused was standing by the 1st accused. After the altercations, Yekini Omotosho returned to his house at Olodan Street to report what he had seen to his elder brother named Bashiru.

On his return to the spot, he saw about five persons standing there. Among them was a special constable named Cephas Sablah (3rd P/W) who lived nearby and who was known to both Omotosho and Tajudeen Aremu. Omotosho, in the presence of the 1st and 2nd accused who were still at the scene, informed the special constable that it was the 1st and 2nd accused who had attacked Tajudeen Aremu. The two accused said nothing in reply to this accusation. On the instruction of the special constable, Omotosho then carried Tajudeen Aremu, who was then still alive, to a place at Ijora from where he hired a minibus in which he (Tajudeen Aremu) was carried to the Apapa Wharf Police Station. After a report had been made at the Police Station, Omotosho was given a police land-rover with which, accompanied by some policemen, he took Tajudeen Aremu to the Lagos General Hospital where he was admitted.

When Omotosho (1st P/W) returned to the Hospital later that day to see Tajudeen Aremu, he was accompanied by the 1st accused and one of the policemen who went in the land – rover with him in the morning. At the hospital, they all spoke to Tajudeen; the 1st accused said it was a pity he did not know that the wounds he inflicted on Tajudeen were so serious. Tajudeen Aremu died on the following day, that is on 16th December, 1970. The doctor (4th P/W/) who performed the post morterm examination on the body reported that the deceased had multiple lacerations, one about five centimetres (2 ins) long on the back of his skull, another about nine centimetres long on the right of the forehead extending to the outer angle of the right eye, a third about five centimetres long on the left shoulder, a fourth also about five centimetres long on the left elbow dislocating the elbow joint, and a fifth on the left wrist about four centimetres long. There were also superficial lacerations, two centimetres long, on the left forearm and a superficial abrasion of both shoulders. According to the doctor, the laceration on the right forehead extending to the outer angle of the right eye went deep into the skull splitting the skull and entering the brain and resulting in haemorrhage in the brain. The doctor found the cause of death to be due to the cerebral haemorrhage from the injuries received. He also found that the lacerations were consistent with injuries caused by a sharp instrument such as a matchet.

Cephas Sablah (3rd P/W), a special constable who knew the deceased, his half-brother Yekini Omotosho (2nd P/W/), and the two accused persons before the day of the incident and who, as we have said earlier, lived near the scene of the attack on the deceased corroborated part of the testimony of Omotosho. While he, Sablah was asleep in his house at about 4.45 a.m. on 15th December, 1970, he was awakened by somebody shouting “what have I done, what have I done.” He got up and went to the person shouting. When he reached the spot he saw five persons each in a pair of pants and carrying a matchet. There was also another man lying on the ground in a pool of blood. There was full moon at the time. Two of the five men, he recognised as the two accused persons; the first accused was wearing a pair of blue pants. He also identified the man lying on the ground as Tajudeen Aremu, later deceased.

About two minutes after he arrived at the scene, Omotosho turned up. In Omotosho’s presence, Sablah asked the first accused what was happening. The first accused did not reply. Omotosho, in the presence of both accused and to their hearing, then informed Sablah that he saw the two accused attacking the deceased with their matchets. Omotosho further said that the first accused told him that but for him, (Omotosho) and the Government, he would have killed the deceased. None of those present commented on what Omotosho said. Instead, the 1st accused instructed the other four men with him to go into his house. He also went in. Thereafter, Sablah advised Omotosho to go to Apapa Police Station and report the incident.

The two accused persons were arrested on 17th December, 1970, the day after the deceased died. Pursuant to the arrest, Paul Asuquo (5th P/W), accompanied by Omotosho, the two accused persons, P/C/ John Osigwe (1st P/W) and Sergeant Odigie, went to the house of the accused at 18, Olojowon Street, Badiya, armed with a search warrant (Ex. G). When they arrived at Badiya Village, Omotosho first showed the three policemen the spot where the attack on the deceased took place. On coming to a spot nearby where the sand appeared fresh, P.C. Osigwe (1st P/W) in the presence of the accused dug up the sand. Under the sand thus dug up, were buried, five matchets (Ex. A-A4) some of them with blood stains. They took samples of the fresh sand (Ex. F). The search warrant obtained in respect of 18, Olojowon Street was then executed. In the room of the 1st accused, the police recovered a pair of blue pants with stripes (Ex. “B”). A Collins 1970 Diary (Ex. “C”) was also found in a wardrobe in the room. The entry in the diary for 15th December, 1970, the day of the attack on the deceased reads:-

“Some thieves entered our residence/compound through the fence by 4.30 a.m. and stole away twelve various of clothes valued ‘a347 15/’97 and as we heard their legs sound we ran to the place and they are unknown persons and escaped. And we went to Iponri police Station and reported the incident and police recorded it into Station diary.”

They then searched the room of the 2nd accused where they found a shovel (Ex. “D”) with fresh sand on it. P.C. Asuquo entered all the things recovered on the back of the search warrant. Asuquo Osigwe (1st P/W) and the two accused persons then signed the list. Included in the list are one pair of pants, one diary, one shovel, and the five matchets which they had dug up near the house.

On being charged with the murder of Tajudeen Aremu and after being cautioned, each accused made a written statement to the police. In his own statement (Ex. “H”), the first accused described what happened on that fateful night as follows:-

“On the 15th December, 1970, by 4.30 a.m. some thieves entered my compound at the above address through the back fence. When I heard of their footsteps sound, I said “who is that, who is that” and there was no reply. Then I started to shout “ole, ole.” Later my junior brother Saka Ayinla came from his room. Both of us searched round the premises and discovered that the thieves had stolen away twelve different kinds of clothes spread in the compound overnight…. The said clothes belong to me Alhaji Ganiyu Salimonu. By the time I and my brother Saka Ayinla were out of our rooms the thieves were seen jumping out of the compound through the back fence. The thieves were unknown to me and they all escaped before any attempt could be made to arrest them.

At about 5 a.m. of the same day 15/12/70, I went to Iponri Police Station to lodge the complaint and necessary entries were made in the police station diary and I was asked to go home and that the police will be sent to me later on. As I got to my house, I saw police from Apapa who told me that I am invited to Apapa Police Station and I followed them.

On getting to Apapa Police Station, I was told that I injured somebody and I said no that I did not injure anybody.”