Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo of a Lagos Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja has refused post conviction bail application filed by convicted actor, Olanrewaju James popularly known as baba Ijesha.
Two months after he was convicted,
Baba Ijesha approached the court for bail pending the determination of his appeal at the Lagos Division of the Appeal Court.
While ruling on the application Wednesday, the judge refused to grant him bail, she held that the convict has not met the exceptional circumstances that warrant granting him bail.
The state counsel, Yusuf Sule and Omowumi Bajulaye-Bishi had argued that the convict has not met special circumstances for the court to grant him bail, pending appeal.
He was convicted for indecent treatment of a child and sexual assault of a minor between 2013 and 2014 among other offences by the court sometime in July 2022.
He was sentenced to serve a five-year concurrent jail term.
However, the applicant’s counsel Mr Chukwudi Adiukwu, told the court that the team brought notice for bail pending appeal pursuant to Section 6 (6) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
Adiukwu argued that Section 51 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL), 2015 empowers the court to admit his client/applicant to bail, either unconditionally or upon reasonable conditions.
In his explanation of the special circumstances, Adiukwu told the court that granting the application will serve the interest of justice as getting a date at the Court of Appeal might be difficult, considering the number of appeals at their (Appeal Court) dockets.
He further told the court that with the prison month calendar, the convict would have served his five years concurrent jail term within three years and six months, before the hearing might take place at the appeal court.
He added that Baba Ijesha was of good conduct before the court during his trial, and was never absent till the judgement.
The applicant’s counsel, therefore, urged the court to consider the special circumstances, at granting bail to the convict.
In her ruling, Wednesday, Justice Taiwo, therefore, held that the applicant must show exceptional circumstances because the term given to him is 5 years which is to run concurrently.
“There is no evidence that the appeal has been entered and there is no indication before this court that the court will not treat the case expeditiously. It is in the view of this court that the applicant has failed to show special circumstances to warrant bail because he is facing a serious crime.
“In view of this case, I am inclined to refuse the bail application of the applicants pending appeal,” the judge ruled.