The trial of alleged kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans, has resumed. Evans’ trial continued on Friday at the Lagos High Court in the Ikeja area, after suffering several adjournments owing to a lack of legal representation.
The trial judge, Justice Hakeem Oshodi, ordered the defendant’s new counsel to write and sign an undertaking to finish the criminal case. He gave the order to Mr Oyekunle Falabi after dismissing a “no-case submission” filed by Evans’ four co-defendants.
At the last sitting of the court, the judge said Evans had developed a habit of engaging the services of lawyers who “disappeared halfway through trial” and this has caused delays in the case. He had then directed the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) to take over his defence at the next adjourned date if he was not represented by any counsel.
Since the trial began on August 30, 2017, Evans was represented at different times by Mr Olukoya Ogungbeje, Mr Noel Brown, and Mr Olanrewaju Ajanaku, all of whom withdrew from the case. He had also told the court that he had no money to pay for his legal fees.
