From Lateef Dada, Osogbo
The owner of Hilton Hotel, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Dr Rahmon Adedoyin, and six staff of the hotel is standing trial for the alleged murder of Timothy Adegoke, a Master’s student of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), have kicked against the move of the prosecution to amend the charges pressed against them.
When the case came up on Monday, the prosecution led by Fatima Adesina, informed the court that she had filed an application, seeking the relief of the court to allow her to amend the charges against the defendants.
According to her, the court can grant the application brought under section 211 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, Osun State, 2018 since judgement has not been delivered in the matter.
However, arguments ensued when counsels to the defendants, K. K. Eleja SAN, Kunle Adegoke SAN, Dr Rowland Otaru SAN, and Okon Ita, urged the court to refuse the amendment application on the ground that the matter was brought to the court by the Federal Republic of Nigeria and not the state.
They argued that the charge brought by FRN can not be replaced or substituted and two charges can not subsist at the same time, saying “the person that filed and signed the application does not have fiat of the Attorney General.
But, the prosecution maintained that the defendant can not dictate to the court or the prosecution the number of charges to be instituted against him.
She relied on section 163 of the Criminal Procedure Act and the case of Uguru against the state, 2002, urging the court to dismiss the counter affidavit of the defendants.
The Chief Judge of Osun, Justice Oyebola Adepele-Ojo, thereby adjourned to July 14 for ruling on the arguments.