An Iyaganku Magistrates’ Court in Ibadan on Friday remanded three men Jiya Adams, 44; Joseph Abidoye, 39; and Femi Adetunji, 40 in a correctional facility over charges bordering on alleged kidnapping.
The defendants, whose house addresses were not provided, are being prosecuted for alleged conspiracy, armed robbery and kidnapping.
The Magistrate Olaolu Olanipekun, who did not take the plea of the defendants for lack of jurisdiction to adjudicate in the case, directed the prosecution to duplicate the case file and send it to the Director of Public Prosecution, DPP, for legal advice.
Olanipekun subsequently adjourned the matter until May 13, for mention.
The prosecution counsel, ASP Anthony Igori, had earlier told the court that the defendants allegedly committed the offence on Feb. 6, at about noon, at Saco Nigeria Ltd., Ibadan.
Igori alleged that the defendants and others at large, while armed with guns and other dangerous weapons, attacked an expatriate and owner of Saco Ltd., Mr Mohammed Il-Saheed, dispossessed him of his Samsung cell phone worth N800,000 and abducted him.
The prosecutor told the court that the defendants allegedly collected N35 million ransom from Il-Saheed’s employers before releasing him after six days in their captivity.
He said the offences contravened Sections 6(B) and 1(2) of the Robbery and Firearms Laws of Nigeria, 2004.
According to him, the offences also contravened Section 4(2) of the Oyo State Kidnapping Prohibition Law, 2016