A 27-year-old female officer of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, NSCDC, has been remanded at a custodial centre in Lagos for alleged involvement in armed robbery.
The officer, Amarachukwu Asonta, was ordered to be remanded on Wednesday by Justice Oyindamola Ogala an Ikeja High Court following her not guilty plea to a two-count charge of conspiracy and armed robbery.
She was arraigned for alleged armed robbery alongside another Civil Defense officer, Adebayo Ajayi, aged 32, who also pleaded not guilty to the charges proffered against them by the Lagos State Directorate of Public Prosecutions, DPP.
The Lagos State DPP, Dr Jide Martins, had said the NSCDC officers committed the offences at 2.20 a.m. on January 30, 2018, along Yaya Abatan Road, Ogba, in Lagos.
“The defendants and others who are now at large, while armed with guns and other offensive weapons high jacked an Iveco container truck with registration number – LSR746XD. The truck contained 1,700 cartons of Chelsea and Action Bitters drinks valued at N2.7million, waybills, mobile phones and unspecified amount of cash,” the DPP told the Court..
Following their arraignment, the prosecutor requested that the defendants should be remanded at a custodial centre.
“My lord, the matter has been on since 2018. The defendants are officers of the NSCDC. They have been evading the court and the court issued a bench warrant for their arrest. The first defendant (Asonta) had to be arrested with the aid of the NSCDC. The offences contravene Sections 297(2) (b) and 299 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015”, Martins said.
Following the submission of the DPP, the defense counsel, Mr. Dapo Daramola, informed the court that he had filed an application for the bail of the defendants.
Justice Oyindamola Ogala ordered the remand of the defendants at a custodial centre and adjourned the case till February 23, 2022 for hearing of the bail application.
