Lucky was 26 years old when he was arrested in April 2017 during a series of police raids in Ajegunle. While some of the other detainees were able to secure bail, Lucky had no means to bail himself out. He was eventually charged with armed robbery, along with two others. The case file was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for legal advice, but Lucky’s name was omitted from the advice. This omission marked the start of Lucky's prolonged struggle.
While his co-defendants proceeded with their cases at the High Court, Lucky was left in limbo, with no progress made and no accountability for the oversight.
During a 2021 visit by the Headfort Foundation to Ikoyi Correctional Centre, Lucky met our lawyer at Ebutte Meta. She took on his case and conducted a preliminary investigation. It was discovered that Lucky had not been brought to court since 2018 due to a burned remand warrant. Furthermore, the DPP’s office had issued advice in 2018, but the court had not acted on it. When a new magistrate took over, a copy of the advice was finally provided. The advice recommended charging Lucky with belonging to an unlawful society, a crime punishable by 3 years imprisonment. By this time, Lucky had already spent 5 years in prison.
In August 2022, a new charge was drafted and read to Lucky, who pleaded not guilty, and his case was set for trial. For the first time since his detention, he was granted bail, but his mother could not find another surety. On several occasions when the prosecution was supposed to start the case, they failed to present witnesses.
On December 16, 2022, our lawyer highlighted the numerous injustices and undue delays Lucky had faced, arguing that continuing the case would be a grave injustice given that Lucky had already served the maximum possible sentence. The court agreed with this argument, and Lucky was discharged.
