The Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled July 14 for the continuation of the trial of 15 individuals accused of unlawfully invading the residence of retired Supreme Court Justice, Mary Peter-Odili.

At the resumed hearing before Justice Ekerete Akpan, the prosecuting counsel, Mr. J.I. Kpandeh, informed the court that the session was set for the continuation of the trial. He then called the third prosecution witness, CSP Solomon Gotang, to continue his testimony.

During proceedings, CSP Gotang presented a letter written to the office of the Force Secretary, along with a response. While the defence did not oppose the submission of the original letter, they objected to the admissibility of the reply, arguing that the document did not match what the witness had earlier identified.

Following similar objections from multiple defence lawyers, the prosecutor withdrew the document with the intention of certifying it before reintroducing it as evidence, acknowledging the oversight and emphasizing its importance to the case.

Kpandeh also presented another document — an analysis reportedly prepared by CSP Gotang — outlining the roles played by each defendant during the incident. The witness explained he could authenticate the document based on specific features, including the Nigerian Police Force logo and diagrammatic representations of the accused persons' actions. Since there was no objection, the court admitted it into evidence.

The prosecution then requested an adjournment to allow the defence to cross-examine the witness. Justice Akpan granted the request and adjourned the matter to July 14.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the accused persons include Adjodo Lawrence (aka Ola Ojo), Michael Diete-Spiff, Alex Onyekuru, Bayero Lawal (allegedly posing as an EFCC director), and Igwe Ernest.

Other defendants are Aliyu Ibrahim, Maimuna Maishanu, Ayodele Akindipe (aka the Herbalist), Yusuf Adaiu (allegedly claiming to be Peter Odili’s godson), Bashir Musa, Stanley Nkwazema, and Shehu Jibo.

They are facing an 18-count charge involving conspiracy, forgery, and unlawful invasion. All defendants have pleaded not guilty and were each granted bail in the sum of N5 million, along with two sureties of the same amount.

The case was initially handled by Justice Nkeonye Maha before being reassigned to Justice Akpan due to the former’s transfer to a different division.