Magistrate demands verified birth certificate of 16-year-old boy in Kirikiri prison

A customary court at Isolo area of Lagos State yesterday demanded a verified birth certificate to be presented by one Mr. Dada from Ibadan whose 15-year-old son is being charged for stealing.

This was after the shocking revelation made by the defence counsel, S.O. Oyeniyi, who said he saw the lad during a prison tour. He appealed to the court that the boy is transferred to a less-hardened remand house from Kirikiri Medium Prison, where he is currently being held.

Oyeniyi said the accused, Peter Dada, was cajoled by the prosecuting officer to mislead the court, adding that the accused was said to have absconded from his residence in the Ibadan, Oyo State during the Eid-el-Kabir but was not reported missing. On getting to Lagos, he was arrested during a police raid for alleged theft.

The court magistrate expressed her displeasure over the parent’s negligence for not making any report to the police after his disappearance, saying “I would have demanded that his parents be prosecuted as well for not performing parental duties with all diligence.”

The boy’s father had claimed the accused was born in 2004 and was not 18 years old as claimed by the police. The magistrate was however not convinced after much quizzing saying the birth certificate presented looked like it had just been issued.
 
The magistrate demanded that the birth certificate be verified, with a first school leaving certificate and a document that certifies the is an SS2 student before his disappearance in August. The case was thereafter adjourned to October 30.