A Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Forensics, Force Headquarters, Abuja, Mr. Ovie Oyokomino, yesterday gave a vivid description on how assassins gained entry into the late Funsho Williams’ apartment. Williams was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Lagos State in 2003.
Oyokomino, a prosecution witness, told the trial judge, Justice Adeniyi Adebajo, of a Lagos High Court that the perishable evidence such as blood samples as well as sample extracted from the diseased’s eye got bad due to interrupted power supply in the course of refrigerating.
He told the court that he visited the scene of the crime at about 12:30pm following a call from the Assistant Inspector-General of Police (AIG) in charge of Zone II. He disclosed that a green rope that was notched in various places was used by the killers to gain access into Williams’ duplex. The witness said: “The assailants gained entry into his apartment (his wing of a twin duplex) from the unoccupied second wing of the twin duplex.
“They used a green colour nylon rope notched in a number of places for easy usage to descend into the deceased’s apartment. We collected the rope, mattress, containing shoe print, cushion in the living room that had shoe print.
We also found a blood stained Kong sleeve shirt, pink in colour, in a Samsonite suitcase in the third room.”
According to him, a mattress and cushion containing shoe prints were collected from the deceased’s house at Corporation Drive, Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi, adding that a blood stained pink coloured shirt was found in a Samsonite suitcase in the third bedroom.
He said: “I got there at about 12:30pm with my men. There were many people there. We could hardly get into the scene with our vehicle.
“The deceased was in a lying position on the floor; his arms were tied behind him. His head region was under the bed and we observed blood around the head on the floor. “He was wearing a multicoloured Ankara in ‘Buba and Sokoto. The Sokoto had shifted and thereby revealing white under pant. There was evidence of ransacking the whole upstairs including, the family’s living room and master bedroom.
“We processed for finger prints, shoe prints and noted the position of things considered to be relevant for our forensic work, which included one empty scab board without the dagger.
“We did not move the body from the position we found it. The pathologist who subsequently moved the body discovered the dagger under it.” The witness noted that there was a manhole in the ceiling which was a concrete ceiling, saying: “An opening of 2×2 covered with a plywood board was made in the ceiling. The manhole was just two feet from the dividing wall of the duplexes and it was similar to the other side. The building has a common roof’’.
According to Oyokomino, the police at that time relied on the mode of entry into the apartment to effect arrest and two suspects, who had previously broken into apartment in similar pattern, were nabbed. He said DNA materials were collected from the suspects and tested in a forensic laboratory in Britain, adding that the suspects were later released after the DNA report exonerated them.
Besides, Oyokomino told the court that Investigating Police Officer (IPO) in charge of the case later came back with suspects apprehended with the cell phone of the deceased, which was removed the day the incident occurred. The witness said: “We obtained the blood sample from the suspects while in detention. Samples were sent for DNA profile, which was reported inconclusive.
This was reported to the prosecuting counsel who immediately set in motion to obtain fresh smoke through a court order at the High Court.
“I was later informed that the judge at the time gave an order but I never saw the Certified True Copy till now. It was only recently that I learnt that the order could not be carried out because the presiding judge at that time died without signing the order she made.”
He also told the court that a fresh order had been secured from the Magistrate’s Court to obtain blood samples of the new suspects along with those of the police men who were attached to the deceased and his private security guard.
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