A Lagos State High Court in Ikeja has sentenced a 30-year-old miscreant, Samson Saliu who specialises in robbing people in the early hours of the morning and at night at the Ijora Badia Bridge, to 10 years imprisonment for armed robbery.
Justice Modupe Nicol-Clay sentenced Saliu after a plea bargain agreement and changed his plea from not guilty to guilty plea.
The defendant was first arraigned on July 21, 2021, on six counts of conspiracy, and armed robbery preferred against him by the state government.
The state’s prosecution counsel, Adeshola Adekunle-Bello, who led Titilayo Olanrenwaju-Daudu, had told the court during Saliu’s arraignment that he committed the offences with others now at large.
The prosecution said that the convict robbed his victims of their valuables while he was armed with a jack knife and ground plug.
Olanrenwaju-Daudu told the court that the convict on December 21, 2016, at about 6 am, robbed one Jamiu Ramon of his money to the tune of N25,000, at the Ijora Badiya Bridge of Lagos state.
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She had also told the court that he robbed one Abdulqudus Ayomide of his Smile Wifi, a Visafone Wifi, ATM cards, a make-up bag, and a bag containing a Samsung phone, a Blackberry phone and an iPad, all property of Ayomide’s boss.
The prosecutor also told the court that Saliu on December 23, 2016, at about 7:30 pm, robbed Odiri Oginni of her phone and handbag containing a White wristwatch and a memory card.
Saliu on the same day robbed one Patrick Eki of a Samsung Symphony phone, an Apple iPad, an external hard drive, a flash drive, a Bible, and the cash sum of N180,000.
According to the prosecution the offences committed contravened Sections 299 and 297 (2), (a) of the criminal law of Lagos State 2015.
However, Saliu pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and the trial commenced.
Trial commenced on October 3, 2022, and the prosecution called two witnesses Patrick Eki and Adekunle Adeoye who testified against the convict before he later changed his plea.
While delivering judgment on Monday Justice Nicol-Clay, held that the first prosecution witness Eki, had testified that the convict and others were robbing people in their cars which attracted his attention.
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He said he was on his way home from work when he saw that there was heavy traffic on Eko bridge, so he decided to take Ijora Badiya, there was still traffic there too and the traffic was at a standstill before he was accosted and robbed by the convict and his accomplices.
The judge said that Eki, who testified that he drove a Gulf Car when the incident occurred stated that after they approached him, they asked him to wind down his glass but he refused.
” He said he refused to wind down my glass so they forcefully broke down my glass and stole my Samsung Symphony phone, an Apple iPad, external hard drive, flash drive, Bible, and the cash sum of N180,000.
“After they finished robbing him, he drove one way and they ran after him until he got to Oando filling station at Ijora Badiya, and while they were trying to fix his tyre he said he saw Saliu and then raised the alarm that he was one of the people that robbed him, but Saliu said he was not a thief.
“He said that he was about to be lynched when the police came and they reported him to the police. But he still insisted that he was not a thief until the police found some jewellery with him and a phone.
“Eki said when the owner of the phone was called, that and came to make a statement at the police station, that was how the convict was detained.
“The witness has also said that it was seven people that robbed him and also robbed others,” Justice Nicol-Clay narrated.
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The judge further stated that the second prosecution witness Adekunle Adeoye had also testified that the convict had also robbed him on September 23, 2016.
He said the convict knocked on the side of his glass and he asked him what is it and he broke the glass and stole his boss’s handbag and make-up bag.
Adeoye had also testified that when he went to the police station, the convict approached him and spoke Yoruba to him that he should forget about what had happened.
The judge further held that on October 9, 2023, the convict was re-arraigned on an amended charge after he changed his plea.
She said the amended charge was now conspiracy and attempted robbery which contravened Sections 301 and 406 of the criminal law of Lagos State 2015.
Justice Nicol-Clay in her judgment said after going through the plea bargain agreement she found him guilty of the offences of conspiracy and attempted armed robbery.
“Samson Saliu, I found you guilty and I sentence you to 10 years imprisonment.
” The term of the imprisonment shall commence from the day he was first remanded in 2016, I so hold,” the judge said.
