Boko Haram trial: Journalists sent out of courtroom

Boko Haram trial: Journalists sent out of
courtroom
on october 25, 2013 at 3:03 am in news
The journalists, who were at the Lagos Federal High
Court, yesterday, to cover the arraignment of the
alleged 17 members of Boko Haram were greeted
with humiliation and threat from men of the
Department of State Services, DSS, that escorted
the accused persons.
The journalists were sent out of the courtroom by
the armed security operatives and one of them
threatened to arrest the journalists if they resist.
A senior DSS officer told newsmen that the directive
to keep them away from the arraignment of the
suspected Boko Haram members was from the
Presidency.
Other litigants were equally barred from the
courtroom. When the Boko Haram case was called,
some lawyers were implored to leave the court,
this, it was gathered, was due to the small size of
the courtroom.
However, the arraignment of the suspected Boko
Haram members, which had suffered two
adjournments on October 2 and 9, due to lack of
interpreter and the absence of the trial judge,
respectively, could not go on yesterday.
This was beacause the first to fifth accused persons
namely (Ali Mohammed, Adamu Karumi, Ibrahim
Usman, Bala Haruna, Idris Ali) did not have legal
representation.
Presiding judge, Musa Kurya, adjourned the matter
till November 27, for the arraignment of the accused
persons.