By Milcah Tanimu

Justice Bolaji Olajuwon of the Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the remand of five individuals at the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja, following their arraignment on charges related to the burning of the Rivers State House of Assembly complex in Port Harcourt.

The five defendants, namely Chime Eguma Ezebalike, Prince Lukman Oladele, Kenneth Goodluck Kpasa, Osiga Donald, and Ochueja Thankgod, face a seven-count criminal charge bordering on terrorism and murder. Although they pleaded not guilty, the judge ordered their remand at the Kuje Correctional Centre until the hearing of their bail application, scheduled for February 2.

The charges against the defendants include acts of terrorism for invading, vandalizing, and setting fire to the Rivers State House of Assembly during a political crisis in October 2023. They are also accused of killing a Superintendent of Police (SP), Bako Agbashim, and five police informants in Ahoada community.

The government alleges that the defendants used various cult groups, including the Supreme Viking Confraternity, Degbam, Iceland, and Greenland, to create chaos among the people of the state and disrupt commercial activities.

Former factional Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Hon. Edison Ehie, although not listed in the terrorism charge, was represented in court by his counsel, Oluwole Aladedoyin (SAN), arguing that his name prominently featured in the alleged offenses. The judge, however, did not allow further arguments, stating that Ehie was not yet a defendant in the charge.

After the arraignment, the leader of the prosecuting team, Audu Garba, applied for a trial date, while Lukman Fagbemi (SAN), representing the first and second defendants, sought to move bail applications, citing their custody since the previous year. The government lawyer, Audu Garba, opposed the bail applications, stating the need for time to study them and file a counter affidavit.

Justice Olajuwon agreed with the prosecution, deeming the bail applications not ripe for hearing and scheduled February 2 for the hearing of all bail applications. Meanwhile, the judge ordered the defendants to be remanded in Kuje Prison until the adjourned date.

The charges specifically accuse the defendants of conspiring to commit acts of terrorism by willfully destroying public properties, including the invasion, attack, destruction, and burning of the Rivers State House of Assembly on October 29, 2023.