Drug Case: Ogun Lawyers Petition Police, Alleges Kashamu of Attempted Murder
Omooba Risaawe
A Group of Ogun State Lawyers have petitioned Commissioner of Police over threat to their lives and attempted murder allegedly traced to embattled Senator,Buruji Kashamu.
The lawyers under Edwards Group Chambers in the letter dated January 30,2017, alleged that Kashamu had contracted some suspected hired killers to terminate them for being counsels to a defendant in a case that bothers on the alleged atrocities of Kashamu in United States of America and United Kingdom.
It would be recalled that, the Ogun State Senator had dragged a member of House of Representatives, Ladi Adebutu to High Court 5,Abeokuta, in a suit number AB/297/2016, for calling him a fugitive and drug baron.
The petitioners in the letter copied Inspector General of Police, Senate President, Chief Judge of Ogun State,Director of State Security Services and Director,National Drug Law Enforcement Agency,said the alleged grouse against them from Kashamu was because they served as counsels for his opponent on the case.
Signed by Kayode Akinsola on behalf of other lawyers, the petition said after the proceeding of January 25,suspected thugs of the senator,said to have been brought to court by him,pursued them,firing gun shots into their vehicles.
The petitioner explained that, the attempted assassination on them was the fallout out of cross examination on Kashamu, who is a claimant in the matter.
‘Unfortunately,the rigorous cross examination of Buruji Kashamu by Chief Edwards Odugbesan on matters that bothers on the alleged criminal atrocities of Senator Buruji Kashamu in the United States and United Kingdom purportedly infuriated Senator Buruji Kashamu and his teeming supporters in court,majority of whom we later discovered to be hired thugs of Senator Buruji Kashamu sometime last week’, the petition said.
‘Suffice it to say that the aftermath of the close of proceedings of 25th January,2017 witnessed an ugly situation where thugs of the popular politician ran after our vehicles and shot to the air somewhere before getting to Kuto,Abeokuta,Ogun State,forcing us to scamper into safety and narrowly escaped being killed’,the petitioners stated.
The lawyers added further that,the above egregious state of affairs was further aggravated by the threat to take human lives,personally made by Kashamu and captured by the Punch Newspaper of Monday,January 30,’wherein he vowed to kill up to five persons before he can be forcefully extradited to the United States of America to answer to charges of his alleged involvement in banned substances…’
The lawyers also called for police protection in the next date of hearing on February 3,because they are now targets of attack by Kashamu,stressing that,’it will not be out of place to state that the defendant and all the lawyers representing the defendant are endangered species and prime targets of Senator Buruji Kashamu’s thugs and assassins therewith’
‘As a corollary to the foregoing,we apply for provision of adequate security cover and orderly for all the lawyers representing the defendant before,during and after court proceedings. We equally invite you to investigate the alleged intention of Senator Buruji Kashamu as to the names of those he intend to kill in the aforesaid national publication and occurence of the 25 January,2016’,the petition emphasised
When contacted on his reaction, the alleged Senator said the allegation was a falsehood, stating that,the lawyers took the step as part of their panic strategy over the case in court.
The media aide,Austin Oniyokor said, the allegation was laughable,pointing out that,why did it take the lawyers over a week after the hearing to write a petition,if truly such occured.
‘There was nothing like attack on anybody. We came to Abeokuta and after the hearing and left peaceful. Even we met the governor’s convoy and can testify to our peaceful exit’,Onyikor said.
He declared that,the allegation was a total false,arguing further that, if such attack happened it would have been reported in the media, and a report made at police station’
‘The truth of the matter is that there was not such incident. A case came up a week ago, and they are now writing a petition over what did not happen. This is to tell you that, it is a panic strategy,knowing judicial doom which awaits them’,he stated.
He challenged the petitioners to substantiate their claim if they have any,emphasising that petitioners are only making noise over nothing
