CHSR Raises Alarm Over Alleged Attempts to Frustrate Murder Trial of Ajiran Community Indigenes

 

The Centre for Human and Socio-Economic Rights (CHSR) has petitioned the Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Lawal Pedro (SAN), alleging deliberate attempts to undermine the ongoing investigation and prosecution of suspects linked to the murders of two Ajiran community indigenes, Sheriff Ishola Salami and Prince Kazeem Ademola Akinloye.

In a petition dated June 11, 2026, and signed by its President, Comrade Alex Omotehinse, the rights group expressed concern over what it described as coordinated efforts to distort facts and compromise the integrity of the judicial process in the high-profile murder case.

According to CHSR, the petition became necessary following what it termed a misleading campaign by another group, the Centre for Citizens Rights Protection (CCRP), which reportedly urged authorities to release the prime suspect, Alhaji Ahmed Tajudeen Akanbi, or grant him bail on the grounds of insufficient evidence.

The organization recalled that the immediate past Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, now Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Moshood Olohundare Jimoh, had during a press briefing on February 19, 2026, declared Akanbi wanted following the arrest and confessional statements of suspects allegedly linked to the killings.

CHSR noted that police investigations, as publicly presented by the former commissioner, revealed confessional statements, corroborative evidence, and what investigators described as a coordinated pattern of violent acts that resulted in the deaths of the two victims in 2023 and 2024.

The group argued that the CCRP’s position amounted to a premature and prejudicial interference in a matter already before competent courts, stressing that criminal proceedings should be allowed to run their course without external pressure.

“More troubling is the attempt by the said group to reframe the narrative in a manner that appears to exonerate an individual currently facing serious allegations of murder, despite publicly available disclosures by law enforcement authorities indicating prima facie evidence and confessional links,” the petition stated.

CHSR warned that interventions capable of influencing ongoing criminal proceedings could erode public confidence in the justice system, weaken prosecutorial institutions, and inflict further emotional distress on the bereaved families and members of the Ajiran community.

The organization further expressed concern that calls for the release of legal advice, immediate bail, and independent reviews, though couched in legal language, could potentially serve as instruments of pressure capable of derailing due process.

The group urged the Attorney-General’s office to ensure the integrity of the prosecution, safeguard the independence of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the judiciary, resist premature interference in the case, protect the interests of the victims and their families, and monitor any actions that could amount to attempts to subvert justice.

CHSR maintained that justice must be based on facts, evidence, and due process rather than sentiment, influence, or selective advocacy.

“The public, particularly the grieving families and concerned citizens, expect that the institutions entrusted with the administration of justice in Lagos State will neither surrender to blackmail nor allow the cause of justice to be perverted under whatever guise,” the petition added.

Copies of the petition were also sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Lagos State Ministry of Justice; the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command; the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone 2; and the Inspector-General of Police.

The group called on the Lagos State Ministry of Justice to take decisive steps to ensure that the ongoing legal proceedings are conducted with fairness, transparency, and integrity.

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