Surety Slumps In Court Over Fake Documents

There was a mild drama at the Federal High Court in Lagos at the weekend when a man, Ikenna Winsu, who stood surety for his brother, accused of concealing money gotten from the proceeds of drug trafficking, suddenly slumped in court.

The incident occurred while Winsu was being questioned by the prosecution on the authenticity of the title documents of landed property, he used as surety to secure the bail of his brother, Ogbo Obiora, from custody.

The suspect, who admitted ownership of the passport photograph, as well as the driver’s license attached to the said document, told the court that he did not own a house in Lagos, nor did he have a Certificate of Occupancy (CofO).

When he was asked how his driver’s licence and passport photograph got into the court’s file and attached to the documents as a surety, Winsu said the lawyer who was handling the matter before his death, Victor Abana, came to him and asked him to stand as surety for his brother.

He further claimed that in the process, the lawyer collected his driver’s licence and passport photographs, stating that was all he gave to the late lawyer.

It was at this point that the suspect slumped, but he later regained consciousness after he was lifted off the floor by one of SAMUEL ABULU

The judge also mandated the deputy chief registrar of the Federal High Court, Lagos to verify the genuineness of the title documents and send their findings to the office of the attorney-general for legal advice.