By TAIYE AGBAJE

Sheikh Sani Abdulkadir, an Islamic cleric and a defendant in the ongoing trial of suspected coup plotters, said he warned the co-suspects that the plan would fail and that they would eventually be exposed.

Abdulkadir, who said he is a Zaria-based Imam, stated this on Monday in a video evidence tendered by the prosecution before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

He said he was informed about the plot and recruited to pray against the leakage of information about the activities of those behind it.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Abdulkadir is the 6th defendant in the trial of the six suspects.

The video evidence was a recording of an interview session between the cleric and some investigators.

Abdulkadir said he knew the alleged mastermind of the plot, Col. Mohammed Ma’aji for less than a year.

He said Ma’aji sent one Sanda to him to help them organise prayers in relation to the alleged coup plot.

He said he had spoken with Ma’aji, who promised to send somebody to him.

He said when Sanda got to him, he (Sanda) said his “oga” intended to stage a coup and needed spiritual prayers and divination regarding its success.

Abdulkadir added that after conducting prayers, he informed them the operation would fail and that two persons would eventually betray those involved.

The cleric said Sanda later came back to him, requesting further prayers so that the two individuals would not betray the group.

He stated that money was later sent to him for prayers and charity, while names of individuals allegedly involved in the plot were also forwarded to him for inclusion in the prayers.

He said shortly after the prayers commenced, Sanda informed him that Col. Ma’aji was not seen for four days, but that he later learnt, through the media, about the arrests that were made over an alleged coup plot.

The 6th defendant insisted that money transferred to him were not payments for supporting a coup, but were meant for prayers.

When asked what his understanding of a coup was, the cleric said it means a military takeover of government.

On why he did not report to relevant authorities, Abdulkadir said he did not because he did not know who to report to.

The cleric said he was arrested when he visited the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after a restriction was placed on his bank account.

Abdulkadir said he had gone to withdraw from the money transferred to him when he discovered that the account had been flagged.

He said after contacting an EFCC deputy director, he was invited to the commission’s office where he explained that the money was meant for prayers.

He said he did not make any statement relating to a coup while in the custody of the EFCC.

In the opening part of the video, investigators asked Abdulkadir to confirm whether or not he was tortured or manhandled since his arrest, and in response, the 6th defendant said nobody assaulted or tortured him and that he was making his statement voluntarily.

At the end of the video, prosecuting lawyer, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, applied to tender physical copies of the statements written by the defendants before a Special Investigation Panel and Military Police investigators.

Lawyers to the defendants objected to the admissibility of the statements and the video recordings tendered by the prosecution.

They argued among others, that the statements were not made voluntarily by their clients and that the process of obtaining the statements, including the video recordings violated the provision of Sections 15 and 17 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA).

The defence lawyers requested for the conduct of a trial-within-trial to ascertain the voluntariness or otherwise of the statements.

Oyedepo did not object to the conduct of a trial-within-trial, but urged the court to reject the request by one of the lawyers to the defendants, Olalekan Ojo, SAN, that separate trial-within-trial session be conducted for each of the defendants.

Ruling, Justice Abdulmalik ordered the conduct of a trial-within-trial to ascertain the voluntariness or otherwise of the statements.

The judge then adjourned the matter until May 12 at 12 noon. (NAN)

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