A mild drama played out at the premises of a Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja on Tuesday after an armed robbery convict, Femi Adebowale was being led to an awaiting van and judicial reporters with the Nation newspaper, Adebisi Onanuga and Gbenga Adewoye of AIT were attacked by a prison warden, A.A Teriba.
The incident took place around the motor park adjacent to the a Bank within the court premises.
Daily Trust correspondent observed that in an attempt to prevent the photograph of the convict being snapped while being led to an awaiting van, Teriba decided to let go of the convict whom he was holding while he rushed at Onanuga, punching him repeatedly in the chest.
The prison warden thereafter ordered Onanuga to handover to him the Blackberry phone he used to snap the photograph. In the scuffle that ensued, the warden tore the reporter’s shirt as he violently removed three buttons.
And when Onanuga gave the phone to a colleague, Gbenga Adewoye of the AIT/RayPower, Teriba turned his attention to him and punched him also on the chest in an attempt to forcibly take the phone from him.
Efforts by all those who intervened were rebuffed as Teriba insisted that he was ready to go to any extent to exonerate himself.
It took the intervention of the State Director, Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) Mrs. Idowu Alakija to calm frayed nerves.
It would be recalled that the attack on Tuesday was the second time in two weeks that a prison warden will assault a journalist. Two weeks ago, Wahab Akinlade of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) was attacked violently when he snapped the picture of Bale of Temidire village in Alagbado, Alhaji Nojeen Abioye who was standing trial for alleged murder and manslaughter.
The matter attracted the attention of Justice Lateef Lawal-Akapo who chided the prison official and told him that there was nothing offensive in the photograph.
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