Bolanle: Defence seeks no case submission

The police officer, Darambi Vandi, who shot and killed a Lagos-based lawyer, Omobolanle Raheem, on Christmas Day, told a Lagos High Court, Tafawa Balewa Square, that he would file a no-case submission to quash the charge.

The defendant’s counsel, Mr Adetokunbo Odutola, made this known on Wednesday after the prosecution counsel, Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Moyo Onigbanjo, (SAN), closed its case.

Vandi is standing trial on a count charge of shooting and killing a Lagos lawyer on Dec. 25, 2022, which he pleaded not guilty.

At the resumed hearing, Justice Ibironke Harrison, told counsel for both parties to file their final written addresses.

She said this after listening to the testimony of the prosecution witness, Dr Williams Olatunde, a pathologist and forensic expert, who told the court how the post-mortem examination was conducted on the deceased.

He narrated how autopsy was conducted on the body of the victim and findings that were made.

“The findings from the external to internal showed that there were multiple defects mainly on the anterior chest wall and one defect from the left axillary fold.

“On internal examination, there were multiple visceral or organ injury and muscula skeletal injury,” he narrated.

According to him, the specific injuries includes multiple rib fracture, multiple injuries to the intercostal spaces and injuries to both lungs.

The doctor stated that he was able to establish three things; hemorrhagic shock, destruction of the chest visceral and musculoskeletal tissues which could be the cause of her death.

He said that the defect in the body was caused by the largest shattered bullet fragment.

According to him, the targetry path of the bullet is determined by the relative positions of all injuries to each other.

He said that the base of the severity of the injuries seen was that the bullet moved at maximum force which was likely to be a discharge from a close range.

“A bullet could strike an object and bounce in the direction of the body.

“In simple terms, the deceased was pregnant within the period of less than three months,” he added.

During cross examination, Odutola asked the pathologist if he can determine through his post-mortem report, the person who pulled the trigger that killed the deceased, he replied no that he could not determine that.

Odutola also argued that the witness based his post-mortem records on media reports.

The witness responded that all conclusions were made based on findings discovered during autopsy.

He added that the degree of explosive force of a bullet discharged from an AK-47 was like thousands of the magnitude of a fire hose that would penetrate into the body.

After cross examination, Harrison, adjourned the case until Feb. 28 for adoption of the counsel’s written addresses.