ETIM EFFIONG
Justice Bassey Nkanang of the Akwa Ibom State High Court, who is presiding over the murder case of a job seeker, Iniubong Umoren, has adjourned the case to December 13, 2021 for a trial within trial.
The trial within trial followed the suspected killer, Uduak Akpan, denial of his earlier confessional statement to the police that he killed Umoren.
Trial-within-trial arises when during a criminal proceeding, a defendant objects to the admissibility of an extrajudicial statement he made during interrogation by security agencies.
Justice Nkanang fixed the date for the counsels to the first accused person, Uduak Akpan and the defendant to call witnesses in support of their claims.
While giving his evidence, Uduak Akpan, a 20-year-old undergraduate, told the court that his confessional statement to the police was not voluntarily made.
After hearing from the parties involved in the case, the court set aside December 13, 2021 for ruling, when two more prosecution witnesses will also conclude their evidence.
The witnesses are Dr. Emeka Nwafor, a Senior Consultant Pathologist from the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, who carried out postmortem examination on the body of Iniubong Umoren and Police Inspector, Samuel Udoh, attached to the Anti-Kidnapping Squad of Akwa Ibom State Police Command, who investigated the incident.
The court also admitted in evidence, the certificate of the photographs and videos showing the exhumation of the body of Iniubong Umoren and a two-in-one photograph of the decomposed body as exhibits in the matter.
The court further set December 1, 2021 as the date for adoption of written addresses on the trial within trial.