Ozubulu Church Massacre: Trial suspects denied bail

The presiding judge, Justice Fidelis .I. Aniukwu in the case of the killings at St Philip’s Catholic Church, Ozubulu at the Anambra State High Court refused bail application for the four suspects standing trial in the August 6, 2017 killings.

The Judge in his ruling said the danger in granting the suspects bail could be risky, especially when the suspects could not prove overwhelming circumstances to warrant their bail.

Justice Aniukwu said it has never been easy to grant bail to someone accused of murder or involved in a capital offence especially when “the tempo of trial is encouraging”, therefore granting bail might jeopardize the case.

The suspects, Chinedu Akpunonu, Chukwudi Ugwu, Vincent Ike and Onyebuchi Mbanefo had in their separate applications for bail stated that they were innocent in the matter and stressed that even before the law they remained innocent and were entitled to bail.

They also stated that they had health conditions that Nnewi Medium Prison health facilities could not handle.

The judge agreed that ill health was enough argument to grant suspects bail in criminal matters, “but they may choose to keep faith in their plea of innocence or jump bail.

In the case of Akpunonu, the judge stated that the court could not rely on a referral by a doctor who last saw the accused in November 2015. He asked the prison authorities to ensure that the suspects were given proper medical attention.

However, Festus Keyamo, SAN, counsel to Akpunonu has promised to file an interlocutory appeal on the ruling.

In the last sitting on May 4, 2018, Emeka Nzelu, a dealer in cosmetics in Johannesburg, South Africa, narrated how Onyebuchi Mbanefo, a.k.a. Dog; the fourth accused, called him on phone in April 2017 and threatened to deal with Aloysius Ikegwuonu a.k.a Bishop for abandoning him when he needed him most.

Nzelu, who is the sixth witness in the trial claimed that Mbanefo told him that had concluded plans to join “forces with Akpunonu to deal with Bishop for failing to assist him to foot his bill for bullet wound surgery, despite the fact that it was because of Bishop that he sustained the wound”.

But during cross examination by Festus Keyamo, SAN, Nzelu, who spoke through an interpreter, said he did not report such threat to law enforcement agencies either in South Africa or Nigeria.

Nzelu claimed that he rather reported the matter to the chairman of Ozubulu Development Union in South Africa. It was also discovered that Nzelu’s statement at the police was inconsistent with his evidence in court.

Emeka Obi, another witness based in Johannesburg, South Africa alleged that the suspected killers had threatened to kill him, his father, and his younger brother in Brazil and attack five families in Ozubulu.

Led in evidence by Jay Jay Ezeuko, SAN, the prosecution counsel, Obi said he was accused of betrayal because he coincidentally travelled with Ikegwuonu from South Africa to Nigeria and rode in bishop’s carfrom Lagos to Ozubulu in April 2016.

“Armed robbers attacked us at Benin and Gozila and Afam, who are in jail in South African prisonclaimed responsibility for the attack and serial killings of Ozubulu people.

“They also are demanded one million dollars from us or they will wipe out all of us. Chinedu Akpunonu, Gozilla and Afam are close friends”, he alleged.

However, during cross examination by the defense counsels, Obi admitted that Akpunonu has never been tried or convicted of any crime both in Nigeria and South Africa.

Obi, who also testified through an interpreter, admitted that his brother, Orakwe once gave evidence in relation to Akpunonu’s innocence in all the killings in Igwe in council’s meeting in Ozubulu.

The matter was adjourned to May 16 and 25; June 8 and 22; and July 6, 2018, for further hearing.