Crime

4 Suspects To Remain In Custody Over UTME Infractions.

Published

10 months ago

July 13, 2023

Four suspects facing trial at the Federal High Court sitting in Akure, Ondo State, who were apprehended during the 2023 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) for registration and examination infractions, are to remain in detention following their failure to secure bail.

Update: Oloyede Breaks Silence On Mmesoma’s UTME Result Falsification Saga

The suspects are to spend two more months in custody pending when the court reconvenes from its vacation, which starts on Friday, 21st July 2023, and will end in October.

The registration impersonation suspects are Timilehin Akinwale, Olayinka Mustapha and Peter Okereke, while Feranmi Adesuyi was arraigned for impersonation.

When the matter came up for hearing on Wednesday, 12th July 2023, an official of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Ms Smith Oseinat Ayodele, told the Court that Feranmi Adesuyi was arrested for impersonation during the examination.

According to her, Adesuyi committed the offence on 28th April 2023, at Amable Nig. Ltd. CBT Centre, Owo, during the 2023 UTME. Ms Smith had told the court that she served as the Biometric Verification Registration Officer at the centre while testifying as a prosecution witness.

According to her, Feranmi approached her to verify his fingerprint before proceeding to sit the examination. She noted that the picture displayed on the computer screen differed from Feranmi’s.

“He was looking different from the picture uploaded on the JAMB portal. I questioned him, and he insisted he was the same person on the screen. I asked him yet again, but he was adamant. I ASKED HIM TO STEP ASIDE since I wasn’t making any headway with him.

I then called the attention of other examination officials and the NSCDC personnel attached to the centre. They also confirmed my position that the face on the screen was different from that of Feranmi. After intense questioning, he later confessed that he was actually at the centre to impersonate another candidate.”

Ayodele subsequently tendered the statement she wrote at the NSCDC Ondo State Command Office that aided the suspect’s arrest. Since the defence counsel did not oppose the tendering of the statement of Prosecution Witness1(PW1), the statement was admitted as Exhibit’ A’. She was also examined in evidence, but there was no cross-examination by the defence counsel.

The prosecuting counsel, Moses Osimen, applied for leave of the court to set a date to enable him to call more witnesses.

The Presiding Judge, Justice T. B. Adegoke, reserved ruling on the bail application by the defence counsel and said the date would be communicated to both parties in the suit.

Update: Oloyede Breaks Silence On Mmesoma’s UTME Result Falsification Saga

In the case of impersonation involving Okereke Peters and two others, the prosecuting counsel, Mr Moses Osime and Mr Gbadebo T. O., told the court that they had a witness in court. In contrast, the counsel to the first defendant, Okere Peters, told the court that he was ready for trial. Still, the counsel representing the second and third defendants, Mr Peter Ujah, informed the court that he was not ready for trial because his office was recently briefed on the matter and was only served a day before the case came up for hearing.

According to him, the initial proof of evidence served on the former counsel, who had been representing the 2nd and 3rd defendants, did not hand over the proof that the prosecuting counsel had served him and only received the same the previous day.

Justice Adegoke then adjourned the case until 13th November 2023 to rule on the three suspects’ bail application.

Meanwhile, the suspects and their relatives broke down in tears when the judge announced the adjournment date, as they were first remanded in prison on 24th May 2023.

SOURCE.

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