LAGOS CLARIFIES CASE INVOLVING TEENAGER AND ADULT

The Lagos State Ministry of Justice has clarified that a teenager and an adult recently reported to have been detained over a pair of slippers were actually charged and prosecuted over allegations of conspiracy to commit robbery and armed robbery.

The clarification was contained in a rejoinder issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Adebayo Haroun, concerning case number ID/22014C/23. The ministry said the slippers were part of the complainant’s account but were not the basis for the charges.

According to the ministry, the case was filed in May 2023 and later transferred to the Ikeja High Court in October 2025.

The defendants pleaded to the charges in October 2025, after which the matter proceeded to trial. The prosecution eventually closed its case after efforts to secure another witness were unsuccessful.

The defendants subsequently filed a no-case submission, arguing that the prosecution had not established sufficient evidence against them.

On September 29, 2026, the court upheld the no-case submission and discharged the two defendants.

The ministry said the complainant, who had allegedly identified the defendants as members of the group involved in the incident, did not appear in court to testify.

The Directorate of Public Prosecutions said the clarification was necessary to correct what it described as a misleading account of the case.