Four dismissed soldiers, Nse Eywdip, 33; Ugwu
Mathew, 23; Emezien Uzonna, 24, and Efosa Ikhomoregbe, 23,were re-arraigned on
Thursday at an FCT High Court, Abuja, charged with raping four sex workers.
The four accused were re-arraigned on a 12-count
charge bordering on conspiracy, rape, assault and armed robbery.
The prosecution counsel, Mr Adama Musa, told the
court that the former soldiers committed the offences between Dec. 21 ,2012 and
Dec. 23, 2012 at about 9 p.m. at River Plate Garden in Wuse 2, Abuja.
Musa said the accused, armed with military rifles
and horsewhips, robbed one Tina Obassy of N40,000, Jennifer Joseph of N30,000,
Precious Okorie, N18,000 and Ruth Madu, N30,000. The offences contravene and
are punishable under sections 97(1) and 298 of the Penal Code, the prosecution
said.
However, the accused each pleaded not guilty to the
charges preferred against them.
Their counsel, Mr Ugboma Nebechi, filed an
application for bail for the accused but Justice Bukola Banjoko did not grant
the application but ordered an accelerated hearing of the case. Banjoko,
thereafter, ordered that the four men be remanded in the Kuje Medium Prison and
adjourned the case to July 20 for continuation of hearing.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the
four soldiers were initially arraigned on June 7, 2013, before Justice
Mudashiru Oniyangi but the case was re-assigned after the elevation of the
judge to the Court of Appeal. Consequently, the case started afresh before
Justice Banjoko.
Source: (NAN)
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