Two police officers dismissed over the alleged killing of a 22-year-old University of Port Harcourt graduate, Anthony Obodo, have been ordered to be remanded at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre.
The order was made on Thursday by a Port Harcourt Magistrates’ Court, where Corporal Alfred Louis and Police Constable Michael Ejekwu were brought before the court on a remand warrant.
The two officers are among four policemen dismissed in connection with Obodo’s death, which occurred on August 27 at Ada George Junction in Port Harcourt.
The other two officers are Assistant Superintendent of Police Fabian Kpeanabari and Inspector Solomon Nworgu. While Kpeanabari was not brought before the court, Nworgu is reportedly still at large.
At Thursday’s proceedings, the Chief Magistrate, Helen Hardy, declined to have the charge read and no plea was taken.
She subsequently ordered the remand of Louis and Ejekwu at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre.
The magistrate further directed that the case file be sent to the Chief Registrar for reassignment and adjourned the matter until September 22, when the accused are expected to enter their pleas and the case may proceed to trial.
Reacting to the development outside the courtroom, Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Port Harcourt Branch, Chinedu Maduba, questioned why only two of the officers dismissed over the incident had been brought before the court.
He said, “We were not pleased when we saw two of the police personnel instead of there that have been in police custody.
“Immediately after the court proceedings, because what happened there was merely a remand proceedings of the two persons that were brought to court.
“So, I reached out to the Commissioner of Police to enquirer why two instead of three that have been in custody, and he explained that the other one that was not brought is an ASP, and that being an ASP, his dismissal has to be ratified by the Police Service Commission, before you take him to court.
“And that is why he was not brought to court, but that he has given his words and that him and the IG are in contact and they are going to fast track that dismissal, so that, with that, he can be brought to court.”
The court action follows growing public anger over Obodo’s death, with the incident triggering protests and demands from his family for accountability.
The shooting reportedly occurred at about 5pm on August 27 after Obodo allegedly failed to stop when police officers flagged down his vehicle at the junction.
According to an eyewitness account, one of the officers fired at the vehicle, hitting Obodo. The vehicle subsequently veered out of control and reportedly struck three people.
Obodo’s father, Princewill Obodo, has alleged that his son was deliberately targeted and has called for justice.
He further claimed that the officers involved had initially been assigned to provide security during the recently concluded Nigerian Bar Association conference at the Yakubu Gowon Stadium in Elekahia before they were redeployed to the area where his son was killed.
