Supreme Court Upholds Acquittal of Major Convicted of Manslaughter

Supreme Court Upholds Acquittal of Major Convicted of Manslaughter

—By Ricky Awodi

The Supreme Court of Nigeria has dismissed an appeal filed by the Nigerian Army seeking to overturn the acquittal of Major Akeem Oseni, who was previously convicted of manslaughter over the death of a junior colleague.

Oseni had initially been sentenced to 10 years in prison by a General Court Martial on February 7, 2020. The conviction was linked to a 2017 incident where he and three other officers—Major O. Osawe, Captain S. Amosu, and Lieutenant Dogary—were tasked with disciplining Lance Corporal Benjamin Collins, who was accused of attempting a jailbreak.

According to court records, Oseni had halted the disciplinary action shortly after it began, counseled Collins, and alerted a superior officer, who further reprimanded the soldier and ordered his return to detention. However, during routine checks, Oseni was informed that Collins was struggling with his leg cuffs. He promptly took action by summoning the officer in charge and transporting Collins to the Defence Headquarters Medical Centre, where he was pronounced dead.

Following his conviction by the court-martial, Oseni appealed, and the Court of Appeal overturned the ruling, declaring him innocent. However, the Nigerian Army challenged this decision at the Supreme Court, seeking to reinstate his conviction.

Despite filing the appeal, the Army failed to compile and transmit the necessary records. As a result, the Supreme Court dismissed the case on procedural grounds.

Justice Uwani Aji, who delivered the lead judgment on Wednesday, ruled, “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 legal team consisting of David Ogundipe, Abdulwahab Abdulakeem, Aisha Okuribido, and Oluwafemi Oluwadamisi.

With this ruling, Major Oseni stands fully acquitted, bringing an end to a legal battle that has spanned several years.