The case involving former First Lady, Mrs. Patience Jonathan and her domestic aides may not have ended as investigation revealed that efforts by the Human Right Organization, Tech 4 Justice to secure the release of the defendants on bail are being continually frustrated.
It accused the Bayelsa State judiciary of succumb to the pressure from influential individual close to the former first lady.
A legal associate of the group, Funmi Adedoyin in an interview provided insights into the challenges surrounding the case, disclosing that the prosecution had yet to close its case, while the accused persons had not opened their defence.
“We have filed applications, made representation and sought bail on several occasions but the judiciary appears unwilling to proceed with the case. The young men and women have been forgotten in prison,” Adedoyin said.
In the same vein, some parents and siblings of the defendants have called on the attorney general of the federation, National Human Right commission and the chief judge of Bayelsa state to bring an end to the continual incarceration of their family members.
Boma Hubert said his brother, Reginald Sunday was working in the First Lady Hotel at Otuoke in Bayelsa State when he was accused of stealing jewelry at the Presidential Villa Abuja, describing the continued detention of his brother as ‘illegal,’ and attributing it to failure of the former First Lady to appear in court since the case commenced in 2019.
Gladys Achese, who demanded the release of the 36-year old Tamunasiki, added that each time she visited her sister, she could help but cry, adding: “This is not a nice experience, it is usually traumatizing.”
She revealed that her parents had earlier appealed to Mrs. Patience Jonathan but nothing came out of the mediation effort, while another female member of one of the detainees said although she is not saying whether her sister was guilty or not, but the Court should do the right thing by giving them speedy and fair hearing, adding: “If they are guilty the Court should sentence them to serve their punishment she said it is in human to keep them in prison for six years without trial.”
Tentacle further learnt that one of the female defendants lost her child while in custody and was unable to attend the funeral, as three of the defendants have been granted bail currently on health condition including one who has tuberculosis.
Adedoyin noted rather than investigate those directly involved in the theft case, the police rather arrested all domestic staff members on alleged instruction of the complainant. Beyond what was being reported, the domestic aides were charged with conspiracy to kill the former First Lady.
This is to ensure that they would not have any means is of escape. The police know that stealing is bail-able offence and because of that, they charged them with another offence entirely different from the alleged theft of jewelry and that is why it has been difficult to secure their bail,” the source said.
