A Coroner’s court sitting at Oredo Magisterial District Benin has declared that the interment of late Samuel Imaikop and three others (names unknown) by the Police and its agent on 24, November 2013 without the order of the court was unlawful, illegal and a contravention of the coroners law.
The deceased were allegedly killed at Iguobazuwa, headquarters of Ovia South West Local Government Area of Edo State by the Police.
The issue before the coroner’s court to unravel were whether there was extra-judicial killing by men or agents of the respondent, whether the extra-judicial killing victims were robbers and whether as robbers or not, they deserved to be buried without order of the coroner.
The respondent in an affidavit sworn to by one Police Sergeant, Efosa Obazee, said the victims were robbers.
Delivering its ruling on the application brought before it by the applicants, Pastor Imaikop and Emmanuel Imaikop through their counsel, Benjy Iluobe, Chief Magistrate F. E. N. Igbinosa further declared that the act of interment of one Samuel Imaikop and four others by the respondents and his agents on November 24, 2013 without the order of the court was an abuse of office the respondent being public officer.
