Karimu Sunday V. The State (2017)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report

MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI, J.S.C.

This is an appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Ibadan Division delivered by their Lordships, Haruna Simon Tsammani, Obietonbara Daniel-Kalio, Mudashiru Nasiru Oninyangi, JJCA with Tsammani, JCA delivering the leading judgment. That Court dismissed the appeal of the accused/appellant after his conviction and sentence by the trial Court per N. I. Agbelu J of the High Court of Ogun State.

The facts as background would be captured hereunder as follows:-

FACTS:

At the trial before the Honourable Justice N. I. Agbelu of the High Court of Ogun State, it was alleged that the appellant who was wearing a black cap, black goggles and a black handkerchief which covered his mouth, on 09/03/04, at about 5pm, went to a cement shop in Ijebu-Igbo, owned by one Ramotalai Alege (PW1), on a motorcycle. Upon arriving at the shop, the appellant alighted from the motorcycle and asked the rider, one Alaba Adesina, to wait for him. The appellant is alleged to have entered the shop on the pre of purchasing 70 bags of cement from PW1. The appellant requested the cost of the bags of

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cement and as PW1 was about to take out a calculator from her bag, the appellant was alleged to have snatched her bag containing N3,600 and bolted out of the shop. The appellant then jumped onto a waiting motor cycle in a bid to escape with PW1 in pursuit. The appellant then threatened PW1 with a dagger which he pulled from his back pocket, but PW1 then began to shout for help, which attracted people to the scene.

According to PW1, when people started coming to the scene, the person who was waiting with the motor cycle tried to move away with the appellant, but Pw2 pulled down the motor cycle and the appellant jumped down and started running away. However, the appellant and the rider were eventually apprehended by concerned bystanders, including an off-duty policeman, who had been alerted by the alarm raised by PW1 and PW2. The rider was apprehended at the scene of the crime, while the appellant was arrested a short distance from the scene of the crime. Upon his arrest, the appellant was taken to the police station along with PW1 and PW2, and the rider of the motor cycle. At the station, the appellant made an extra judicial confessional statement. The

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statements of the rider and PW1 and PW2 were also obtained by the Police. Kareem Sunday’s confessional statement (Exhibits B-B1) will be found at pages 8-13 of the record.

At the trial, the appellant pleaded not guilty to the charge. The prosecution called three (3) witnesses and tendered six exhibits, including the appellants extra judicial statement obtained by the Police. The appellant testified in his own defence but called no other witnesses in support of his case. The appellant however made a bare denial of the charge and sought to retract his extra-judicial confessional statements (Exhibits B B1) on the ground that he did not write it. The appellant however, admitted to appending his signature to the confessional statements after they had been read to him by the Police. The evidence of Ramotalai Alege (PW1) and Jaiye Alaba (PW2), who both positively identified the appellant as the person who robbed PW1, will be found at pages 25 – 27 and 32 to 33 respectively of the record. The evidence of Adeniran Kehinde (PW3) the Police Officer who investigated the offence will be found at pages 42 – 44 and 50 to 53 of the record.

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In a judgment delivered on 28/12/2011, the learned trial judge held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and convicted the appellant and sentence him to death by handing. The judgment of the trial Court will be found at pages 65 to 81 of the record. Aggrieved by this decision, the appellant filed a Notice of Appeal dated 21/3/2014 against the decision of the trial judge seeking orders quashing his conviction and the sentence of death passed on him.

On 05/12/2014, the lower Court dismissed the appellants appeal and affirmed his conviction and the sentence of death passed on him by the trial Court under Section 1(2) (a) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act.