The Federal High Court in Abuja struck out treason charges against minors involved in the August #EndBadGovernance protests, following a formal withdrawal by the Federal Government.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu dismissed the charges on Tuesday after an application for discontinuance was submitted by Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation (DPPF) and representative of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi, SAN.
The DPPF cited Sections 174(1), (b), and (c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, and Section 108 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, as the legal grounds for the discontinuation.
Mr. Abubakar informed the court that the AGF had assumed control of the case and decided to withdraw charges against the minors. Additionally, he requested that proceedings involving the minors be conducted in private, referencing Section 266(b) of the ACJA 2015 and Section 1 of the Child’s Rights Act.
Defense counsel, including Mr. Femi Falana, SAN, raised no objections to the application, leading Justice Egwuatu to formally strike out the charges against the minors.
In a related ruling last Friday, Justice Egwuatu granted bail to 114 protesters arraigned by the police, setting bail at N10 million each with two sureties in similar amounts.
This group faced separate charges, categorized into two cases: a 10-count charge (FHC/ABJ/CR/503/2024) listing 76 defendants, and a 4-count charge (FHC/ABJ/CR/527/2024) listing 43 defendants, totaling 119 individuals. Due to health concerns, five minors were absent from court and thus exempted from the arraignment.
Court proceedings were briefly disrupted when four defendants in the first charge, including three minors aged 14 to 18, collapsed in the courtroom. This prompted Justice Egwuatu to pause the session for 40 minutes.
An additional defendant from the second charge also experienced health complications, prompting the court to provisionally discharge these five individuals, with a provision for re-arraignment following medical treatment.
When charges were read, all 72 defendants in the first case and 42 in the second pleaded not guilty. Both groups were subsequently granted bail under the same terms and have their trials scheduled to begin on January 24, 2025.
President Bola Tinubu, on Monday, directed the AGF to expedite the release of all minors involved in the case, marking a significant step towards resolving the legal proceedings surrounding the August protests.
Comments powered by CComment