The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the case against Major Hamza Al-Mustapha (rtd) over the 1996 murder of Alhaja Kudirat Abiola, wife of the acclaimed winner of the 1993 presidential election.
Mrs. Abiola was slain in Lagos during nationwide riots over the annulment of her husband’s electoral victory.
Major Al-Mustapha, then Chief Security Officer to the late Military Head of State, General Sani Abacha, was charged with Mohammed Abacha and Lateef Shofolahan.
They were charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit murder and Mrs. Abiola’s murder on June 4, 1996.
In 2012, the Lagos State High Court found the defendants guilty and condemned them to death by hanging.
However, in 2013, a three-member Court of Appeal panel unanimously overturned the decision, releasing and acquitting the defendants owing to insufficient evidence.
Lagos State appealed the acquittal to the Supreme Court, which granted permission to revive the case in 2014 despite the lapse of procedural timelines.
On Thursday, the state neglected to send legal representation or initiate any proceedings to pursue the appeal.
Mr. Paul Daudu, SAN, counsel for Major Al-Mustapha, maintained that Lagos State had abandoned the case, citing a 30-day deadline in 2014 to file a notice of appeal, which it failed to do.
After inquiries by a five-member Supreme Court panel chaired by Justice Uwani Aba-Aji, it was determined that Lagos State neither had representation nor provided an explanation.
The panel determined that nine years was sufficient time for the state to respond and thus dismissed the appeal, noting that the state had plainly lost interest in pursuing the matter.
