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ranging from the non-availability of defense counsel or failure by the
prison authorities to reproduce the accused before the said Court to the
non-availability of prosecution witnesses. The matter was subsequently
transferred and the same was first mentioned before this Court on the 9th of
March 2009. From that date this matter suffered another 41 adjournments
at the instance of both sides with the prosecution only able to call in one
witness. This witness tendered exhibits “A’ and “B”; the cautionary
statement of the accused and the medical report of the alleged victim
respectively. The main reason advanced by the prosecution for their
inability to call any further witnesses is that the witnesses have changed
their addresses or have vanished out of the jurisdiction. Yet the prosecution
refused to advice itself on the need to have the charges against the accused
withdrawn. Faced by this unfortunate situation, and compelled by the need
to do substantial justice in this matter, this Court was constrained to order
the closure of the prosecution’s case. The defense then elected to rest their
case on that of the prosecution thus necessitating this judgment.
In the case of MOGAJI v. NIGERIAN ARMY (2008) 3 NCC, 449 the Court
held that an accused person who decided to rest his case on that presented
against him by the prosecution has admitted the facts as presented by the
prosecution. The ideal period to do so is where the case of the prosecution
is porous. In exhibit “A” the accused elected not to say anything to the
police and this was recorded as such. In exhibit “B” the alleged victim is
said to have sustained laceration on the vaginal wall. There is no evidence
as to the cause of this laceration and the report does not ex-facie state who