A Department of State Services (DSS) investigator has told the Federal High Court in Abuja that a DSS operative, Ekpenyong Owoh, was abducted and murdered by four suspected members of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in February 2022.
The witness, identified as PW1 and testifying under the codename “AAA,” disclosed to Justice Joyce Abdulmalik during the ongoing trial of the four defendants.
The defendants are Michael Okafor, also known as Onyechimeleze; Chinedu Chukwudozie, alias Kante; Chibunna Olisa; and Chigozie Olisa, also known as Ability. They were arraigned on September 28 on a six-count charge relating to terrorism and kidnapping, and pleaded not guilty.
The prosecution alleges that the defendants conspired to commit acts of terrorism and abducted Owoh as he travelled from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to Awka. They are further accused of holding him hostage and killing him, belonging to IPOB and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network (ESN), and unlawfully possessing firearms, including an AK-47 rifle and a pump-action gun.
Led in evidence by prosecution counsel Munirat Oladunjoye, the witness said he and his team investigated the case in February 2022. He said the investigation led to the recovery of Owoh’s Toyota Pontiac vehicle and mobile phone, and to the arrest of Okafor and the other defendants.
The witness alleged that Okafor, whom he identified as an ESN sub-commander, and the other defendants were present when the DSS operative was abducted and taken to their camp. He also told the court that all four defendants bore ESN marks on their bodies.
To verify the claim, Justice Abdulmalik ordered the defendants to step forward one after another and remove their shirts. The witness and defence counsel, K.C. Ekwe and G.U. Oputa, confirmed the presence of the marks.
PW1 further testified that the defendants voluntarily made statements, which were recorded. Defence counsel, however, alleged the statements were obtained under duress, prompting the judge to order a trial-within-trial to determine their voluntariness.
The witness maintained that the defendants were not tortured, adding that video recordings of their statements had been downloaded onto a flash drive. The prosecution applied for the confessional videos to be played in open court, and the court granted the application.
Justice Abdulmalik directed that the witness, who has not been discharged, will resume his testimony after the trial-within-trial concludes.
She adjourned the case until November 16 for continuation of the trial-within-trial and cross-examination of the witness. The judge warned that defence lawyers risk forfeiting their right to cross-examine him if they fail to appear on the adjourned date.
