Awaiting Trial Inmate At Jos prison, Ike Chukwu,” Cries out, says I’m planning To Commit Suicide

Yakubu Busari

It’s time to reflect on the Nigerian judicial system and the pretrial and detention of inmates in all correctional facilities.

A 28-year-old Ike Chukwu who was working with Ifeayichukwu Motors Garage located at Gada Biu Park who was arrested sometime in 2010 is still languishing in prison (correctional Center, Jos) for illegal possession of firearms as alleged and awaiting trial, as his case has never been tried, but has been kept in the prison.

Ike Chukwu decried that since 2010 when some personnel of the Nigerian Police Force invaded his residence alleging that a friend brought in a gun into his room on 10/10/2010 at about 7 am,  he was whisked to A, Division cell for the crime he claims he knows nothing about it.

He disclosed that they raided the compound claiming to be embarking on a gun search inside the house and then picked him up to A, Division later CID headquarters for a further thorough investigation into the alleged crime.

Mr Ike Chukwu who has been in detention spoke to our investigative team and exposed that his health conditions are gradually deteriorating due to the ill-treatment meted to him during the investigation.

He is the provost of Q1 room, as he explained that he sustained leg injuries during the Jos prison jailbreak as he refused to escape believing that the alleged crime committed had nothing to do with him.

Accordingly, I worked with Ifeayichukwu motor transporters at Gada Biu Park loading passengers all over the country to earn a legitimate living,  but his journey to prison was a setup, his own family was denied access as his girlfriend abandoned him in the correctional facility by relocating back to the Eastern part of Nigeria.

Ike Chukwu told our medium that the police officers in uniforms came to his place of work and whisked him and they didn’t come with a warrant for arrest, the room was vandalized and they boggled him and took him to the cell when they finally opened up to him that someone brought a gun to his place.

He pointed out that IPO during the investigation inquired about the gun which he replied, “I don’t know what he is talking about” but sir, I left my compound this morning and there’s nothing like a locally made gun inside his room.

Ike Chukwu stated that they kept torturing them to make confession and accept that a locally fabricated gun was discovered inside his room but sir, “this is a wound sustained through torturing with stick beaten which this occurred on 11/11/2020.

“However, when I refused to admit the accusation labeled against me, the punishment of keeping me at the correctional facility inflicted a lot of agony each day I woke up to remember the incident.”

He appealed that they manhandled him during the exercise making him a more frustrating youth but if urgent measures are not taken, Mr. Ike Chukwu is planning a suicide to end his life.

Ike Chukwu in his retired bed reported that all the youths in Nigeria don’t have a future, security personnel would come to their house and frame them before they knew it, and the next thing is that they see they already landed in either police cells or the beautiful gate of a correctional facility.

You see in my case the IPO wrote my statement that claimed to have implicated me to admit and forced me to sign it behind.

Ike Chukwu stressed that the case file was later transferred to CID on 12/12/2020 after, A Division police station without proper investigation into the alleged crime committed but I don’t have anyone to stand for me.

According to Ike Chukwu, he has been in detention since the 3rd Day of February 2021 before they later arraigned on a count charge at Plateau State High Court, No. 3, before his file was again moved to Court 2 and now Court 8.