ABDULAHI IBRAHIM VS. THE STATE

CORAM

PARTIES

ABDULAHI IBRAHIM APPELLANTS

THE STATE

RESPONDENTS 

AREA(S) OF LAW

SUMMARY OF FACTS

The Accused/Appellant and three others who are at large were charged for criminal conspiracy and armed robbery contrary to sections 5(b) and l(2)(a) of the Armed Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, Cap 398 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990 , but only the accused was arraigned at the trial court where he was convicted. Being dissatisfied with the conviction, he appealed to the Court of Appeal which dismissed the appeal and affirmed the conviction and sentence passed by the trial court. Aggrieved by the decision of the lower courts he has appealed to the apex Court.

HELD

Appeal dismissed

ISSUES

1. Whether the appellant was properly arraigned before the trial court?

RATIONES DECIDENDI

DEFENCES-ALIBI-PROOF OF-DUTY ON THE ACCUSED PERSON

“However, even though no burden is placed on the accused person to prove his alibi, he is not expected to merely state that he was not at the scene of the crime without more. It is his duty to give the lead and particulars of his whereabout which will lead the prosecution in their investigation of the alibi”. PER OLUKAYODE ARIWOOLA, JSC

PLEA-REQUIREMENTS OF A VALID PLEA

(a) The accused must be placed before the court unfettered unless the court shall see cause otherwise to order;
(b) The charge or information must be read over explained to the accused to the satisfaction of the court by the registrar or other officer of the court;
(c) It must be read and explained to him in the language he understands
The accused must be called upon to plead thereto unless there exists any valid reasons to do otherwise as to objection to want of service where the accused is entitled by law to service of a copy of the information and the court is satisfied that he has in fact not been duly served therewith.” PER KUMAI BAYANG AKAAHS, JSC

GUILT OF AN ACCUSED PERSON- HOW ESTABLISHED

“The law is trite, that in criminal trials, the guilt of an accused person for the commission of an offence could be established by any or all of the following:
(a)The confessional statement of the accused;
(b)Circumstantial evidence;
© Evidence of an eye witness.” PER OLUKAYODE ARIWOOLA, JSC

STATEMENT OF AN ACCUSED-RETRACTION OF A STATEMENT BY AN ACCUSED-DUTY OF COURT THERETO-WHETHER THE TRIAL COURT CAN CONVICT ON SAME IF IT IS A CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT

“A statement is retracted when the accused admits making the statement but denies making it voluntarily. When that scenario is presented before the court of trial, it becomes incumbent on that court to determine if the statement is voluntary before it is admitted. See Section 28, Evidence Act, 2011.
Where such a statement is a confessional statement, the trial court can convict on the strength of the confession but there should be some corroboration.” PER KUMAI BAYANG AKAAHS, JSC

DEFENCE OF ALIBI-WHERE RAISED-DUTY ON PROSECUTION TO INVESTIGATE SAME

“The law is trite that if an accused person raised unequivocally the issue of alibi, that he was somewhere else other than the locus delicti at the time of the commission of the alleged offence with which he is charged and gives some facts and circumstances of his whereabout, the prosecution is duty bound to investigate the alibi set up, to verify its truthfulness or otherwise.” PER OLUKAYODE ARIWOOLA, JSC

CASES CITED

STATUTES REFERRED TO

Evidence Act, 2011

The 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of NigeriaThe Criminal Procedure Code Cap 491 LFN 1990

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