A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, yesterday, awarded a cost of N20,000 against Mr Olukoya Ogungbeje, counsel to suspected kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, a. k. a Evans.
Trail judge, Justice Abdulazeez Anka also
warned Ogungbeje to desist from practices
unbecoming of a legal practitioner.
The judge said this while adjourning the
fundamental rights suit on behalf of Evans by
Ogungbeje, over alleged illegal detention.
Respondents in the suit are the Nigeria Police
Force, Lagos State Police Command, the
Commissioner of Police Lagos State and the
Special Anti-Robbery Squad.
Evans had sought a court's order directing the
respondents to immediately charge him to
court in accordance with constitutional provisions, if there existed any case against him.
In the alternative, he had prayed the court for
an order, compelling the respondents to
immediately release him unconditionally in the
absence of any charge.
The case, which was scheduled for yesterday,
could not proceed as Ogungbeje was absent
in court.
When the case was called, a litigation officer
from Ogungbeje's law firm, Mr Stephen Abunike, told the court that his principal was indisposed and had written a letter seeking an adjournment.
In response, counsel to the Police, Mr Emmanuel Eze, told the court that he had only sighted the letter in court, noting that the letter was signed by one Saheed Sanni, a lawyer in Ogungbeje's law firm.
Eze urged the court to reject the excuse and
consider same as an affront to the court,
adding that it showed that the law firm was
unserious, as well award a punitive cost of
N100,000 against the applicant and his counsel.
In a short ruling, Justice Anka awarded a punitive cost of N20,000 against Ogungbeje for what he described as unprofessional conduct.
The judge noted that while Ogungbeje had
written a letter to the court, he did not send a
copy of the letter to the counsel for the police.
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