The former wife of the Ooni of Ife, Naomi Silekunola; the Chief Executive Officer of Agidigbo FM, Oriyomi Hamzat; and the Principal of Islamic High School, Basorun, Abdullahi Fasasi, at the Agodi Correctional Centre are to be remanded in prisons custody.
A Chief Magistrate’s Court sitting in Iyaganku, Ibadan, Oyo State, on Tuesday, gave the order following their arraignment before Magistrate Olabisi Ogunkanmi.
The trio were arraigned in connection with the stampede at an Ibadan funfair held at Islamic High School, in which 35 children died and several others wounded.
Magistrate Ogunkanmi, ordered that the defendants should remain in custody pending legal advice from the Director of Public Prosecution of the state Ministry of Justice.
The case was adjourned until Monday, January 13, 2025.
The defendants we re being charged with conspiracy, causing death by negligence, endangering public safety, and failing to provide adequate security and medical facilities at the event.
But the their defense counsel has told the Magistrate’s Court that it lacked jurisdiction over the case and sought that his clients be kept in police custody rather than being remanded in the correctional facility.
One of the defense counsels, Waheed Olajide, said remanding the suspects in custody under the current circumstances was premature and could infringe on their rights, especially if they are later found innocent.
Counsel to Hamzat, Ridwan Adekunle, also disclosed that an earlier agreement with the police indicated that his client would not be sent to the correctional center due to his health condition, following his hospitalization after the tragedy.
Magistrate Ogunkanmi disagreed with the submissions of the counsels to the parties, saying “she has the discretion to exercise and she is going to exercise same in putting the suspects in correctional Center.”
The Magistrate said, “The police who brought the suspects to the court ought to have factored in their health conditions and the circumstances that informed the case itself before bringing them to court and having brought them, it lies on her responsibility of putting them in a correctional Center, pending the time legal advice would come out from the DPP.”
According to her, the legal advice would determine the next steps, including whether the defendants would face trial, a reduced charge, or be discharged.
The court premises witnessed a heavy presence of security operatives as agitated supporters of Hamzat stormed the venue, expressing anger when the suspects were being conveyed in patrol vans.
Meanwhile, five other suspects initially arrested in connection with the incident were released on Monday night. Those freed include Genesis Christopher (24), Tanimowo Moruf (52), Anisoloja Olabode (42), Idowu Ibrahim (35), and Abiola Oluwatimileyin (25).
