‘Stop leaving charms in my court’ — Judge warns

<p>Justice Hakeem Oshodi of an Ikeja High Court has warned members of the public to stop leaving charms in his courtroom.</p>, <p>Justice Oshodi gave the warning on Monday as the trial of five men charged with the murder of one Ifeanyi Etunmuse began.</p>, <p>“No one should leave charms in my courtroom. It should not be repeated. A talisman was found after the last adjourned date in the murder case,” he said.</p>, <p>The judge, who referred to the charm as ‘property,’ warned the courtroom audience: “Do not leave your property here again. It does not work anymore.”</p>, <p>The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Lagos State Government brought charges against the five suspects – Atunrase Omolabi, Shittu Olawale, Olaide Opeifa, Olanrewaju Adebiyi aka Maja, and Jamiu Omosanya aka Orobo.</p>, <p>They were charged for attempted murder and murder of Ifeanyi Etunmuse at Western Funeral Home, Ijede Ikorodu.</p>, <p>Earlier in the trial, the defence counsel continued with the cross-examination of the prosecution witness, Babatunde Olayinka.</p>, <p>Olanrewaju Ajanaku, the lead defence counsel to the first, second, and third defendants and later on the fifth defendant, asked Olayinka if he could say that the defendants had a hand in the attack on the deceased.</p>, <p>He also asked him if he was able to get a view of the compound of the local politician and funeral services businessman, Oluwatosin Onamade from his hiding place following the alleged attack.</p>, <p>The witness told the court that he hid himself in the cemetery, and lay down for a while to hide himself from a group of men that he saw wielding machetes at the Onamade compound on the day of the incident, April 16, 2021.</p>, <p>The witness further told the court that as he hid himself from the machete-wielding men, he turned around and saw a dead body beside him.</p>, <p>Ajanaku asked the witness: “Can you say emphatically that the first, second, third and fifth defendant had anything to do with the body you saw?”</p>, <p>The witness replied that he c