Four young men who landed in prison custody after they attended a naming ceremony at a community in Lagos State have now regained their freedom as a court has discharged and acquitted then.
The four men, whose names were given simply as Saheed, Shehu, Akanji and Leke, attended the naming ceremony in their community on May 10, 2025.
The following morning after the ceremony, the community woke up to news that a shooting occurred during the celebration which made them to invite policemen.
When police officers came, they raided the homes of the four young men and arrested them.
According to them, during their arrest, no firearms or other weapons were found in their possession, yet they were taken into custody.
They also alleged that they spent 19 days in detention and on May 30, 2025, they were arraigned on a two-count charge of unlawful possession of firearms and belonging to an unlawful society which they pleaded not guilty.
Although the police asked the court to remand them in prison, the magistrate stated that there was no evidence before the court linking the four men to the offences.
The magistrate therefore granted them bail in the sum of ₦200,000 each with two sureties, but due to their inability to meet the bail conditions, they spent one month at Kirikiri prison before their bail conditions were eventually perfected.
Their ordeal, however, was far from over because for more than a year, they appeared in court whenever their case was called. Throughout that period, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) failed to issue the legal advice required to move the case forward.
Their plight got the attention of an advocacy group that usually visits prisons and courts in the state, the Headfort Foundation for Justice and on hearing from them, one of the lawyers of the foundation took up their case and began to represent them in court.
The foundation announced the development on its X handle on Friday, August 7.
It was gathered that on July 30 this year, after reviewing the case, the lawyer applied for the matter to be struck out, arguing that the four men had consistently attended court, while the prosecution failed to diligently prosecute the case or provide the necessary legal advice for more than a year.
The judge granted the prayer, struck out the case, discharged and acquitted Saheed, Shehu, Akanji and Leke.
