Bolanle Raheem: Court sentences ASP to death by hanging

On Monday, the Lagos High Court, sitting at Tafawa Balewa Square on Lagos Island, condemned Drambi Vandi, a suspended assistant superintendent of police, to death by hanging for the murder of Mrs. Omobolanle Raheem, a lawyer from Lagos.

The ASP was sentenced by Justice Ibironke Harrison after she declared him guilty of killing the expectant lawyer.

According to Harrison, the prosecution had established its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

The judge concluded that the victim was shot at close range by the offender.

According to The PUNCH, the court rejected a "no case submission" put forth by Vandi in April.

A "prima facie" case has been built against the defendant, thus Justice Harrison ordered him to present his defence.

Vandi claimed that he had no case to answer in his application on the no-case submission, and he urged the court to discharge him and dismiss the lawsuit.

Adetokunbo Odutola, the defence attorney, asked the court to take note of a number of things in his arguments, including the fact that none of the witnesses saw the defendant shoot and the fact that the ballistic analysis of the gun that was allegedly used to fire the bullet expressly stated that it could not be connected to any of the firearms recovered from the police officers at the scene.

In contrast to the prosecution's claim that the dead was shot in the chest, Oduntola claimed that the pathologist who testified mentioned that the bullet entered the body from the left through the armpit.

The prosecution, however, had challenged the reasons and encouraged the defendant to defend himself, arguing that the prosecution had successfully made its case against him. The prosecution was led by the Attorney General of Lagos State, Moyosore Onigbanjo (SAN).

Source