A Nigerian Army appeal to reverse Major Akeem Oseni’s acquittal after he was found guilty of manslaughter in connection with the death of a subordinate colleague was denied by the Supreme Court.
On February 7, 2020, a General Court Martial first sentenced Oseni to ten years in jail.
He and three other officers, Major O. Osawe, Captain S. Amosu, and Lieutenant Dogary, were instructed to reprimand Lance Corporal Benjamin Collins, a soldier who was suspected of attempted jailbreak, in 2017. This event led to his conviction.
Court documents show that Oseni had halted the disciplinary hearing soon after it started, given the soldier advice and then called in a higher-ranking officer, who further censured Collins and sent him to return to the detention centre.
Oseni later learnt that Collins was having trouble with his leg cuffs when performing routine checks.
He immediately took action, summoning the officer in charge of the detention facility and transporting Collins to the Defence Headquarters Medical Centre, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
Following a court-martial, Oseni was convicted of manslaughter, although one co-accused, Captain Amosu, was acquitted at sentence.
Major Osawe and Lieutenant Dogary, the other two officers, were eventually released and found not guilty by the Army Council on November 24, 2020.
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Oseni was not satisfied with his conviction, so he challenged the decision. The Court of Appeal reversed the decision and ruled that he was innocent.
The Nigerian Army, however, appealed this ruling to the Supreme Court in an attempt to have his conviction upheld.
Despite filing an appeal, the Army failed to compile and transmit the necessary records. In its ruling.
The Supreme Court dismissed the case, citing procedural lapses.
Justice Uwani Aji, who delivered the lead judgment on Wednesday, said, “Application filed on 9/10/2023 for an order dismissing this appeal for failure to compile and transmit record of appeal is hereby granted as prayed. The said appeal No. SC/CR/948/2023 is hereby dismissed.”
Oseni was represented by a team of legal counsel including David Ogundipe, Abdulwahab Abdulakeem, Aisha Okuribido, and Oluwafemi Oluwadamisi.
