Despite admitting murder, Judge enters not guilty plea for suspected killer of Akwa Ibom job seeker
The Attorney General of Akwa Ibom State, Uko Sam, who is is leading the prosecution team told reporters that “for a capital offence, an accused person pleading guilty is neither here nor there. As far as the law is concerned, he is not guilty until we prove our case.
“If you recall when he (the accused) started, his counsel was not there in court and the court had to appoint a lawyer to represent him. So, if an accused person pleads guilty in a capital offence like this, the court normally would enter a plea of not guilty for him.”
On his part, the court-apointed defence counsel, Sampson Adula, who is the coordinator of the Legal Aid Council, prayed the judge to enter the not-guilty plea for his client.
Adula told reporters that under the law, “any case that attracts death penalty requires a not-guilty plea, even if the suspect pleads guilty.
“The court is enjoined to enter a plea of not guilty to a murder suspect, even if he pleaded guilty and that was what I prayed the court to do because of the nature of the case, which carries capital punishment.”
He vowed to represent Akpan till the end of the trial and insisted that he was innocent.
