..adjourns case till Nov 4, 2021

By Chioma Onuegbu, Uyo

Trial Judge, Justice Bassey Nkanang of Akwa Ibom state High court 9, sitting in Uyo, has issued a production warrant to Uyo Correctional center to produce one Anwan Bassey Akpan, the third accused person in Umoren’s murder case, in court on Thursday November 4, 2021.

Nkanang gave the order Tuesday following Anwan Akpan’s absence in court at the resumed hearing after she was arrested and detained for allegedly obstructing the arrest of his brother, Uduak Akpan, the first accused in the case.

During the proceedings, the State Solicitor-General, Christopher. J. Udoh, prayed the Court to issue the production warrant since the third accused person was not in court.

Udoh also informed the Court that the initial charge filed in June has been substituted with amended one filed on October 29, 2021 in order to join the third accused person to the Suit.

The two Counsels to the defendants in the matter, Emms Ekongson and Samson Adula however, did not raise any objection to the prayers by the prosecution.

Justice Nkanang, who is just resuming new in the court after the former justice, Bennett Illaumo was substituted also ordered that a witness summon be served to the Chairman Uruan Local Government Council, Surv. Iniobong Ekpenyong at his Ewet Housing Uyo and one Kufre Michael Effiong of No 16 Esuene Street, Uyo.

The new judge who promised to follow the trial dates of his predecessor adjourned the case to November, 4, 2021 for plea taking and for pre-trial.

Speaking with newsmen in the Court premises, former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Barr. Uwemedimo Nwoko (SAN), expressed happiness that the third accused person who had created some level of complications in the process of apprehending her brother Uduak-Abasi Akpan had been arrested and charged.

Nwoko who is representing the complaints in the case said: “This case has a great deal of public interest, and I am representing the interest of Ati Annang Socio-cultural organization, from the ethic extraction where the deceased came from. We are going to follow up on the proceedings up to the end of the matter.

“I am very happy today that His Lordship, the new trial Judge who is just resuming in this court has done something very unique.
One, he has decided to sustain all the dates that his predecessor adjourned the case before, which is about 10-days.

“Two, we now have the principal accused person, with the father, and the sister charged together for complicity in the death of our dear sister Iniubong Umoren. Right now the Prosecution team is led by one of the best, the Solicitor General of the state.

” And that shows the level of seriousness that government is attaching to this matter. And we as a Socio-cultural organization also representing the family of the deceased, we are interested in getting to the bottom of the case.

“Good enough there is an amendment to the charge. The initial charge carried two names, which was the main accused person and the father. Now the sister has been added in the suit as third defendant”

Uduak-Abasi Akpan, and his father Frank Akpan are standing trial over the murder of 26-year-old Inuiobong Umoren, a graduate of Philosophy, University of Uyo, (UNIUYO)

The 20-year -old Uduak-Abasi Akpan had on April 29, 2021 lured late Umoren with a fake job offer and later allegedly raped, killed, and buried her in a shallow grave in his father’s family compound in Uruan LGA.