The Federal High Court in Abuja has admitted three videos in the trial of Biafra nation agitator Nnamdi Kanu, including one in which the defendant is supposed to be seen inspecting a radio transmitter allegedly smuggled into the country.
This is one of the highlights at the resumed hearing of the terrorism trial, where Kanu alleged that he made statements under duress, sometime in October and November 2015
The trial on Wednesday commenced with the prosecution calling its third witness who is a 27 year old DSS official who identified Nnamdi Kanu as the leader of IPOB, and also leader of ESN, who uses his broadcasts on radio biafra to kill people and cause violence.
The DSS official with pseudo name CCC said he met Kanu the first time in October 2015 and a few other times while leading an interview which was recorded with the defendants consent.
The witness also mentioned that Kanu gave written statement during the same period.
The prosecution lawyer Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, brought out two compact disks which the witness identified as the recording of the interviews and then tendered in court, which was later admitted in evidence and marked as exhibits PWQ and PWR.
Awomolo also produced 3 copies of written statements which the witness identified as being made by Kanu.
The defense counsel Kanu Agabi SAN, initially did not object to the statements being admitted in court, but later informed the court that Nnamdi Kanu just mentioned that he gave those statements under duress.
The trial judge Justice Omotosho asked Agabi to point out the elements of involuntariness in each of the statements, which prompted the defense lawyer to ask for a little time with his client.
After a brief meeting between Kanu and the lawyer conduction proceedings for the defense team, Paul Erokoro SAN, the counsel told the court that his client said, he had asked for his lawyer to be present when he was taking the statements but DSS refused.
Secondly, kanu mentioned that he was being detained in solitary confinement inside a dungeon, and the DSS officer who took the statement, a certain Mr Brown and not Mr CCC in the witness dock, had threatened that if he didn’t write what he is told, he would not be brought out of the dungeon.
Erokoro also said that Kanu mentioned that he had developed nose bleeding while in the dungeon and a DSS doctor had advised that he should be allowed at least one hour of fresh air to stop the nose bleeds.
Kanu said that the DSS officer threatened that if he didn’t cooperate, that one hour of fresh air would be withdrawn from him.
Erokoro also said that Kanu alleged that the DSS forced him to write down certain things about the then president Goodluck Jonathan and the then governor of Imo state Rochas Okorocha.
The prosecution counsel Awomolo told the court that the allegations of duress are false and cannot be substantiated, noting that they have video evidence of Kanu as he was being interviewed and as he was making the written statements, and there is no evidence of any kind of harassment or duress on the defendant by the DSS.
At this point, Justice Omotosho ordered for a trial within trial to ascertain the veracity of the allegations of duress.
During this trial within trial, the prosecution witness Mr CCC said he cannot remember any of his colleagues called Mr Brown during the interview of Kanu.
CCC said Kanu did not make any request for his counsel during the interview and also stated that Kanu was not in solitary confinement during his detention at the DSS faculty.
The witness also denied that Kanu was forced to make any comment about President Jonathan or Rochas Okorocha the then governor of Imo State.
CCC said that during the interview of 24 October 2015, they played a clip for the defendant, where he granted an interview with Sahara Reporters, wherein he referred to Nigeria as a zoo, alleging that Rochas Okorocha was trying to Islamise the southeast region, and referred to President Muhammadu Buhari in very derogatory terms.
CCC said after they played the video to the defendant, he admitted that he granted the interview.
Awomolo presented the videos of the interviews they had with Kanu to the court, the same clips that had been admitted and marked PWQ and PWR. This time, they were marked ‘exhibit trial within trial (TWT) A and B’ respectively.
CCC said that after the interview of October 24, Kanu was again interviewed on 4th November 2015 and in that interview, he said they played a video for the defendant where he was saying that he had inspected a radio transmitter which he smuggled into Nigeria and set up at Ubuluisiuzor in Anambra State and that Kanu admitted that he was the one in the video.
A CD plate of that interview of November 4 was tendered in court and marked exhibit TWT C, which Awomolo asked the the video be played in open court.
Parts of the video showed where Kanu repeatedly said that he was denied access to his lawyer, he also said that he was being detained in a “confined space”, but the atmosphere seemed jovial and the interview was friendly as Kanu was smiling at several intervals, and when he requested for water, he was given.
Part of the video showed where Kanu was writing down a statement.
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Midway into the playing of the CDs, Justice Omotosho said he would combine the rulings of the TWT with the ruling of the effects of Kanu’s lawyer not being present during the interviews.
After the video was played, the witness Mr CCC said that he reported to his superiors what Kanu complained about his lawyers not being present and about being granted access to his mum and wife, and that to the best of his knowledge, appropriate actions were taken.
During cross-examination in the trial within trial, the defense lawyer Erokoro asked CCC why the faces of the people interviewing Kanu were not shown in the interview, and he said it is because they were protected by law.
Erokoro asked him whether they introduced themselves to the defendant with their real names before the interview, and he said yes, but couldn’t speak on the issue of names.
When asked if heard the defendant say he was being held in an underground cell and if the DSS facility had one, the witness said he had no idea.
After the cross examination, the trial judge Justice Omotosho asked the two parties to go hold discussions and endeavor to adopt their briefs before 8am tomorrow and that he would rule tomorrow.
When parties returned, the defence team opened their defence in the trial within trial as Kanu to the witness dock as DW1
Kanu mentioned that the statements he gave was under duress, as he was coerced into it.
He said the coercion started from Lagos when they were transporting him from Lagos to Abuja, blind folded and in chains where a DSS officer struck him.
While describing his cell, Kanu said he knew it was underground because they kept telling him to mind the steps as he climbed lower.
Kanu said one Mr Brown was the person who investigated him had threatened him that he would remain in the dungeon and not granted the one hour fresh air they usually give to him, just the same way they denied him the bail granted by one Justice Ademola.
During cross-examination by Awomolo, Kanu maintained that his detention at the DSS in 2015 was without any court order, and that his interview were taken without his lawyers, and the atmosphere was not conducive.
After cross-examination, Justice Omotosho asked Awomolo and Agabi to adopt their written addresses and file before 9am on Thursday, and then adjourned the matter to May 29, 2025.
