A former University of Lagos student, Chidinma Ojukwu, accused of killing Super TV Chief Executive Officer, Usifo Ataga, said on Tuesday that statements she made during police interrogation were false and under duress.
Ms Ojukwu said this in continuation of her testimony, which she started as she opened her defence earlier this month before trial judge Yetunde Adesanya of the Lagos State High Court sitting at Tafawa Balewa Square.
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She is standing trial alongside her sister, Chioma Egbuchu, and one Adedapo Quadri, for the murder of Mr Ataga.
The defendants were arraigned on 12 October 2021 by the Lagos State Government.
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Ms Ojukwu and Mr Quadri are facing the first to eight counts of conspiracy, murder, and stabbing while her sister, Ms Egbuchu, is facing the ninth count of stealing an iPhone 7 belonging to the late Mr Ataga.
At the resumed hearing, continuing her defence on Tuesday, Ms Ojukwu said, due to a fear the Investigating Police Officer (IPO), Mr Bamidele, and his team put in her, she could not deviate from a narrative they dictated for her.
“I narrated what the IPO asked me to say to the Lagos State commissioner of police,” Ms Ojukwu said.
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Ms Ojukwu was led in evidence by her lawyer Onwuka Egwu.
According to her, after she was arrested on 23 June 2021, Mr Bamidele collected her phone and asked her to input the password, which she did.
The defendant testified that the IPO located her sister’s name in her contact list, asked her to confirm it, and then wrote it down.
She testified that the IPO also inquired about her laptop and her visit to Computer Village, Ikeja.
“He asked what laptop I sold, and I replied it was a MacBook. When he asked where I sold it, I told him it was to a phone vendor. He then noted down the vendor’s address.”
Ms Ojukwu said the IPO asked her about the source of some cannabis she smoked, and she said someone supplied it.
“He asked: ‘The cannabis you said you and Michael smoked, where did you get it? I said, ‘Quadri’.
“Bamidele said: ‘Can I have his phone number? I said, ‘It’s on my phone’. He collected the number and wrote it down.
“Then he asked: “Where is Micheal’s ATM card? I said, ‘ I am not with Michael’s ATM card.
“ He said: Five million Naira was withdrawn and subsequently N20,000 was withdrawn a couple of times, totaling N5,380,000.
“I said, ‘Sir, I don’t know anything about it’,” Ms Ojukwu said.
The defendant also told the court that after the interrogation, Mr Bamidele said he got some evidence and asked her to write her statement.
Ms Ojukwu testified that during her interrogation, she faced mistreatment from Mr Bamidele.
She alleged that Mr Bamidele slapped her after she expressed concerns about writing her statement without her legal counsel being present.
She testified that her hands were handcuffed to a chair while Mr Bamidele read the statement to her multiple times.
According to her, the following morning, Mr Bamidele and another officer escorted her to the office of the Lagos State commissioner of Police where she was coerced into repeating the allegedly dictated statement.
She further testified that she was paraded before journalists and was instructed to stick to the “script” provided by Mr Bamidele.
She added that she was taken to another office where she was forced to write a statement under duress.
The judge adjourned further proceedings till 7 May.
Denial
Testifying earlier on 16 April, Ms Ojuwku told the judge she discovered his lifeless body of the Super TV CEO Mr Ataga in a Lekki short-let apartment on 15 June 2021.
Ms Ojukwu, then a 300-level Mass Communication student of the University of Lagos, told the court that she met Mr Ataga through a mutual friend, Fiyin, who was dating Mr Ataga’s friend, James.
“Due to some renovations at his VGC home, he suggested getting a hotel or an apartment in Lekki, where he had meetings.
“I eventually found a short-let apartment at 19, Adewale Street, Off Ologolo Road, Lekki, which Mr Ataga approved.
“We met there that evening and went out to eat at Ango Villa restaurant. We picked up wine, then returned to the apartment to drink, eat, and smoke,” she narrated.
She also narrated how they spent their day on 14 June 2021.
According to her, they woke up late that day. Mr Ataga asked her to contact her “Loud” (cannabis) and rohypnol supplier.
She said Mr Ataga transferred N15,000 to her for narcotics and gave her N25,000 for food.
Ms Ojukwu said she spent about two hours buying meals due to COVID-related delay.
On 15 June 2021, she said, Mr Ataga again requested more “Loud,” but asked her to pay because he could not transfer funds.
She said he also gave her money to buy food and juice.
“After struggling to reach him due to an issue with the okro soup I went to buy, I returned to the apartment and found him dead.
“I saw blood stains, pushed the door open, and saw Michael on the floor, covered in blood. I checked for pulse, but there was none.
“In panic, I wiped the blood off my body, changed clothes, and packed my things including a brown envelope containing Ataga’s bank statements, ID cards, and documents belonging to one Mary Johnson.
“I also took some jewelry and left the apartment in a cab,” she said
Prosecution’s case
Her testimony runs counter to the case of the prosecution.
Testifying last year, the 11th prosecution witness, Richard Somiari, a forensic expert, testified that the DNA blood sample found on Ms Ojukwu’s red dress matched that of the victim, Mr Ataga.
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The director and consultant for the Lagos State DNA and Forensic Centre, said his office received 21 different items on different days from their DNA centre.
According to him, the items that were received for evidence included a stained red dress, an army green T-shirt, and a DNA sample from Ms Ojukwu.
He also said other items received were urine, blood, gastric content and byle which were retained for toxicology reports.
The witness said the goal was to create an evidence triangle to link the suspect to the crime scene and the victim.
Earlier in November 2021, another prosecution witness narrated what she knew about the case.
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