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From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
A property manager, Stanley Ani was on Tuesday arraigned before the Abuja division of the Federal High Court by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), for allegedly possessing firearms without statutory permission.
But after the three-count charges were read to him before Justice Nkeonye Maha, he denied the offences.
Following his plea of not guilty, his lawyer, Igwe E.A, urged the court to admit his client to bail in liberal terms.
Igwe told the judge that his client had been on administrative bail granted by the police.
The defence lawyer predicated the bail application on Sections 35 and 35 of the 1999 constitution.
“The defendant has been on administrative bail granted by the police on self-recognisance. Therefore, we urge the court to grant the defendant bail on liberal terms,” Mr Igwe submitted.
He prayed the judge to give his client five days to fulfill whatever bail conditions that the court would impose on him.
However, the judge considered Mr Igwe’s submissions as an attempt to usurp the constitutional powers of the court.
However, an enraged Justice Maha rebuked the defence lawyer “for taking away the constitutional powers of the court to determine a defendant’s bail conditions.”
“From the records of the court, the defendant on five occasions failed to appear in court,” the judge reminded Mr Igwe.
The judge threatened to report Mr Igwe to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) over his conduct in the case.
But the prosecuting lawyer, Chika Amuka, did not oppose the bail request.
Regardless, delivering a bench ruling, Justice Maha granted the defendant bail in the sum of N2 million.
The judge ordered Mr Ani to produce two sureties who must be civil servants not below level nine in the Federal Civil Service.
In addition, the judge ordered the defendant and the two sureties to surrender their passports to the Chief Registrar of the court.
The defendant will however be remanded at Kuje prison in Abuja pending when he meets the bail conditions.
The suit was adjourned until 20 May for commencement of trial.
In count one of the charges, the police said Stanley in 2020 at Ndiaga Amechi Uwani within the jurisdiction of the court possessed two automatic pump action guns without license duly issued by the governor of Enugu State or the commissioner of police in the state contrary to section 5 and punishable under section 27 of the firearms Act 2004.
In count two, the police accused the defendant of being in possession of 20 rounds of cartridges, which he used in firing the two pump action guns in breach of the law.
The police further accused the defendant of forgery of gun licence.
