Justice Modupe Nicol-Clay of a Lagos High Court, Ikeja, yesterday, sentenced a 30-year-old labourer, Samson Saliu, to 10 years imprisonment for armed robbery.
According to the police, Salihu specialised in robbing people at the early hours of the morning and at night at the Ijora Badia Bridge.
Justice Nicol-Clay sentenced Saliu after he pleaded guilty to the charges brought against him by the Lagos State government.
The convict was first arraigned on July 21, 2021, on a six-count charge bordering on conspiracy and armed robbery.
Following his plea, the prosecution counsel, Adeshola Adekunle-Bello, commenced trial on October 3, 2022. The prosecution called two witnesses: Patrick Eki and Adekunle Adeoye, who testified against the defendant.
During trial, the witnesses had told the court that the defendant committed the offences with others who are at large. The witnesses said the convict robbed his victims of their valuables while he was armed with a jack knife and ground plug.
She said that the convict, on December 21, 2016, at about 6:00 a.m., robbed one Jamiu Ramon of his money worth N25,000 at the Ijora Badia Bridge.
She further told the court that he (Saliu) robbed one Abdulqudus Ayomide of his Smile Wifi, a Visafone Wifi, ATM cards, a make-up bag, and a bag containing a Samsung phone, a Blackberry phone and an iPad, all property of Ayomide’s boss.
The prosecution had also told the court that Saliu, on December 23, 2016, at about 7:30 p.m., robbed Odiri Oginni of her phone and handbag containing a white wristwatch and a memory card.
Also, Saliu on the same day robbed one Patrick Eki of a Samsung Symphony phone, an Apple iPad, an external hard drive, a flash drive, a Bible, and a cash sum of N180,000.
The prosecution said his offences contravened the provision of Sections 299 and 297 (2), (a) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
Saliu pleaded not guilty to all the counts but later entered a plea bargain agreement and changed his plea.
While delivering judgment, Justice Nicol-Clay held that the first prosecution witness, Eki, had testified that the convict and others were robbing people in their cars, which attracted his attention.
The judge upheld Eki’s testimony that he drove a Gulf Car when the incident occurred, stating that after they approached him and asked him to wind down his glass, he refused.
She also stated that the second prosecution witness, Adekunle Adeoye, also testified that the convict robbed him on September 23, 2016.
The judge further held that on October 9, 2023, the convict was re-arraigned on an amended charge after he changed his plea.
She said the amended charge was now conspiracy and attempted robbery, which contravened Sections 301 and 406 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
Justice Nicol-Clay, in her judgment, said after going through the plea bargain agreement, she found him guilty of conspiracy and attempted armed robbery.
“I find you guilty and I sentence you to 10 years imprisonment. The term of the imprisonment shall commence from the day he was first remanded in 2016, I so hold,” the judge ruled.
