CP vs Chukwunenye Nweke: Court adjourns prosecution of Chukwunenye Nweke by U. S. Ekpo Esq

By Chukwuma Onyeuka

The Magistrate Court, Awka, presided over His Worship Mike Anyadiegwu while adjourning the prosecution of Chukwunenye Nweke by U. S. Ekpo Esq, to 15th March,2021, 12th April,2021, 26th April,2021 and 30th April, 2021, lamented over subsequent frustration of the prosecution of the matter by U. S. Ekpo Esq.

The court said the prosecution council is handling the case file as if there is something in the case file the prosecution council,U. S. Ekpo Esq doesn’t want the court to know.

” If the prosecutor knows he cannot make it to court, why can’t him hand over the case file to another police lawyer for prosecution. The prosecutor is handling the case file as if there is something he is hiding “.

Responding to the lamentation of the court over subsequent frustration of Chukwunenye Nweke’s trial by police, Chukwunenye Nweke through the Defence Lawyer, Barr. Emmanuel Udegbunam told the court that , indeed, the prosecutor has something in the case file he is hiding. That the prosecutor feels threatened that the said materials in the case file could be released if he, U. S. Ekpo, should hand over the police case file to another police lawyer.

Udegbunam Esq also informed the court that Mr. Chukwunenye Nweke had petitioned U. S. Ekpo Esq on the evidence held by the prosecution council to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association and U. S. Ekpo has filed a counter affidavit.

Neither Corporal Oko Solomon who was to be cross examined today( 19th January, 2021), nor the prosecution council, U. S. Ekpo Esq nor the case file was seen within court the court premises today, but Pw1, Dr. Aguiyi Anuli Ihuoma who came to court told the court that the prosecutor could not make it to court on ill conditions.

Sometime in May, 2019 and October,2019, the prosecution of Chukwunenye Nweke by U. S. Ekpo was forestalled by the absence of the police case file.

That U. S. Ekpo asked one police Prosecutor, Innocent Agu from Central Police Station ,Awka and his colleague, Chinyere Okonkwo from Area Command, Awka to appear before His Worship Mike on his behalf but U. S. Ekpo did not hand over the case file to them thus forced the court to adjourn the case subsequently.