The coroner who presided over a preliminary inquest into the killing of 18-year-old Monsurat Ojuade has ordered the police to show the face of Samuel Philips, the alleged killer, before his next appearance in court.
The coroner gave the order at a magistrate court in Ebute Metta, Lagos, on Wednesday, after Israel Mbaibe, the lawyer representing the deceased’s family, said the identity of the suspect should not be a privileged information and requested that his face be shown.
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“The identity of Samuel Philips should not be made a privileged information,” Mbaibe said while addressing the press after the inquest. “We only have a name; we don’t have the face. The world needs to know the face of the person who killed Monsurat Ojuade.”
The inquest was a response to a letter written by Mbaibe to the Chief Coroner of Lagos State, demanding an update on the murder of the young lady.
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Though, following his arraignment, Philips appeared before Yaba Magistrate Court on Friday, he wore a face mask which concealed his face.
Philips was said to have shot Ojuade at close range during a police raid in Mogaji community, Surulere, Lagos, at about midnight on September 11.
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