When Seyi Omodara, the magistrate presiding over the Christianah Idowu homicide case, did not show up in court on Monday, reactions trailed the development.

“Why is the case in a magistrate court and not a high court?” several people asked.

A month had passed since the Lagos State Police Command first arraigned Ayomide Adeleye, the university student who confessed to Idowu’s murder, but the arraignment was not for the magistrate to determine if he was guilty or not.

“We were still investigating to unravel more pieces of evidence and confirm if he committed other crimes, but the new commissioner of police told us to charge him immediately,” a source within the police told EQ on September 26, when Adeleye made his first court appearance.

READ MORE: Magistrate Absent as Police Rearraign Confessed Killer Ayomide Adeleye

This source said the police presented the facts to the magistrate to secure a remand warrant so they could hold him while they awaited advice from the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP).

According to the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, the DPP’s primary functions include the issuance of legal advice on case files sent by the police, instituting prosecution against defendants, prosecution of criminal cases at both the high courts and the magistrate courts, handling of appeals at the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.

What the police do not have is legal advice from the DPP on how to proceed with the case. Without this, they cannot take the matter to the State High Court which has the jurisdiction to preside over homicide matters like this one.

READ MORE: INSIDER: How OOU Student Killed FUNAAB’s Christianah Idowu, Used Her Picture to Demand N3m Ransom

”The DPP advice sometimes takes three to four months,” a source told EQ on Tuesday.

“The police regularly send cases to the office, but responses come months later. In the meantime, the police approach magistrates to grant remand warrants so suspects can be in custody while the advice is pending. This is why Adeleye has not been tried yet.”

EQ called the phone number listed on the state ministry of justice’s website, but it was switched off on Friday. EQ also sent an email on Friday.

EQ got a reply saying, “We acknowledge receipt your mail[sic] and same is receiving attention. We will endeavour to respond as soon as possible.”

Lagos State Justice Ministry’s response

Adeleye, a 200 Level Philosophy student of the Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU), Ogun State, confessed in early September to killing Christianah Idowu, a 300 Level student of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB).

Both were neighbours and attendees of the same church. Idowu was on her way to the University of Lagos (UNILAG) on August 19 when she took a detour to Adeleye’s mother’s shop as it was raining. Adeleye invited Idowu into his house, where he later strangled her, propped her body up, took a picture and sent it to Ruth Ozobia, Idowu’s foster mother.

What followed was a ransom demand as he made the woman believe Idowu was alive and in captivity.
The post Reason Police Haven’t Prosecuted Confessed Killer Ayomide Adeleye appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.