Impact Stories
Vincent worked as a generator repairer in a modest workshop, striving to support himself and his family. In March 2019, a client brought him five generators for repair. Vincent successfully repaired three and returned them in good condition, but the other two took longer. During the repair of one of them, the coil was damaged and burnt. Vincent sought a replacement in the market but was unable to fix it.
Around the same time, Vincent lost his brother and had to travel to his village for the funeral. While he was away, he received a call directing him to report to the police station. Upon returning to Lagos, he discovered that the client had reported him for stealing the generator coil. Vincent pleaded with the complainant for more time to replace the damaged coil, explaining that he had no one to bail him out due to the recent loss of four family members in a land dispute and the death of his only brother in Lagos. Despite his pleas, the complainant insisted that Vincent be charged in court if he could not pay for the coil immediately.
Vincent wrote a statement and offered to take the Investigating Police Officer to the market where he had attempted to repair the coil to verify his story. Despite these efforts, he was charged in court for theft of the generator coil.
During a prison outreach at Ikoyi Correctional Centre, Headfort Foundation's Legal Aid Team met Vincent and took on his case. They discovered that the case had been stagnant since the arraignment, with the complainant not attending court proceedings and no witnesses appearing for the prosecution.
On March 16, 2020, our lawyer presented a strong case in open court and Vincent was given a chance to recount his ordeal. After reviewing the evidence, the court granted our lawyer’s application to dismiss the case, and Vincent was released after spending a year in prison.
