SO WHAT NEXT? : Al-Mustapha's Death Sentence; Appeal Court Reserves Judgment

The Court of Appeal, Lagos, on Monday reserved judgment in an appeal filed by Major Hamza Al-Mustapha and Lateef Shofolahan, challenging a death sentence handed them by a Lagos High Court.
Al-Mustapha, a former Chief Security Officer to the late Gen. Sanni Abacha, and Shofolahan, an aide to the late Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, were sentenced to death on Jan. 30, 2012.
Kudirat was a wife to the late Chief M.K.O. Abiola, the presumed winner of the annulled June 12, 1993, presidential election.
Justice Mojisola Dada of a Lagos High Court convicted the duo of involvement in the murder of Kudirat.
The lead judge of the Court of Appeal, Justice Amina Augie, reserved judgment, after counsel to both the appellants and respondent had adopted their written briefs.
Mr Joseph Daudu (SAN), counsel to Al-Mustapha, while adopting his address, urged the court to allow the appeal and set aside the judgment of the lower court.
Daudu argued that the trial court erred in law to have based its judgment on the testimonies of Sgt. Barnabas Jabila (Sgt Rogers), PW1; and PW 2, Mohammed Abdul (Katako), which were contradictory.
 "The testimonies of PW1 and PW 2 were inconclusive and contradictory.
"The court drew inferences from these contradictory statements, to establish the guilt of the appellants.
"It is my submission that those inference upon which the court based its judgment, are merely political evidence formulated by the respondent, and which the trial court ought not to have considered.
"I, therefore, urge the court to allow this appeal, and quash the judgment of the lower court," Daudu submitted.
Mr Olalekan Ojo, counsel to Shofolahan, also aligned with the submission of Daudu.
In his response, counsel to the respondent, Mr Lawal Pedro (SAN) urged the court to dismiss the appeal and uphold the judgment of the lower court.
Pedro argued that apart from the evidence of Jabila and Abdul, there were other evidence from the defendants themselves, which supported the counts of conspiracy and murder.
He, therefore, urged the court to dismiss the appeal for lack of merit.
Augie, thereafter reserved judgment to a date that will be communicated to the parties.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the convicts were arraigned in October 1999 on a four-count charge, bordering on conspiracy and involvement in the murder of Kudirat.
Kudirat was killed on June 4, 1996, on the Ikosi-Ketu Road in Ikeja, Lagos.
Dada had found them guilty of the offence, and accordingly convicted and sentenced them to death by hanging.
In the notice of appeal, the appellants contended that the death sentence handed down by the lower court was unwarranted, unreasonable and a manifest miscarriage of justice.
They also contended that the trial judge erred in law by arriving at the conclusion that they conspired to kill Kudirat.
The appellants faulted the judge's treatment of the contradictory statements of Jabila and Abdul.
They further faulted the court's reliance on the testimony of Dr Ore Falomo, on the bullet extracted from the corpse of Kudirat.
According to the appellants, the court's rejection of portions of Jabila's testimony, which favoured them, and applying only areas which did not favour them, was a gross miscarriage of justice.
The appellants are, therefore, praying the Court of Appeal to entertain the appeal, set aside the judgment of the lower court and discharge them of the charges of conspiracy and murder.