Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo of an Ikeja High Court has discharged and acquitted a Lagos lawyer, Kole Bello and three others alleged to have sold a land in Lekki belonging to a dead woman, have been discharged and acquitted.
The defendants who were being prosecuted by the who were prosecuted by the Lagos State Government before the court were set freed on the ground that the prosecution failed to prove its case against them.
Bello was arraigned alongside three others, Chukwu Victor, Friday Palmer and Osumah Terry, for allegedly selling a landed property in Lekki, belonging to late Mrs Francisca Awolaja.
They were tried on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy, fraud and forgery filed against them by the state government in October 2017.
In the charge Bello and others were alleged to have forged a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) with reference no. 63/63/1989, dated September 28, 1989, of landed property in Lekki, belonging to late Mrs Francisca Awolaja.
The defendants were also accused of impersonating the late Awolaja in order to fraudulently sell her land to one Mr Rotimi Olubeko for the sum of N5 million.
The defendants however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
During trial, the prosecution called five witness to testify against the defendants while all accused testified for themselves in proving their innocence.
Delivering judgment in the matter, Justice Taiwo held that the prosecution also failed to prove the charge of conspiracy against the defendants.
The trial judge held that the defendants only acted in their professional capacities in the sale of the property.
The court held that neither the lawyer nor the three others defendants conspired with acclaimed owner of the land who was not before the court during the pendency of the trial bordering on the sale of the land.
โit is very clear that the document (C of O) use for the sale of the land was forged, but the prosecution fail to prove case of forgery, conspiracy and fraud pressed against the defendants, from the evidences and exhibits before the court, it only show that all the defendants acted in the various professional capacities in facilitating the sale of the land in question, so therefore. I hereby discharge and acquit themโ, the court held.
