Schoolmate of late Super TV Chief Executive Officer, Usifo Ataga, Mr. Rotimi Albert, on Tuesday, narrated to the court of how Ataga’s family and friends searched for him, only to find his body in the mortuary on his (Ataga) birthday.
Albert who is the fourth prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Chidinma Ojukwu, the murder suspect made the disclosure while giving evidence before a Lagos High Court, sitting at Tafa Balewa Square, TBS.
Ojukwu, a 300-level, Mass Communication student of the University of Lagos, is facing trial alongside her sister, Chioma Egbuchu and one Adedapo Quadri, for Ataga’s murder.
The witness, who introduced himself as a long time schoolmate and family friend to the late Ataga, said one of their mutual friends called him in the evening of June 16 in respect of his (Ataga) birthday being 17th and asked if he had seen or heard from Ataga that no one had heard from Ataga since Sunday (June 13).
The witness said he tried calling the deceased on phone, adding that his phone rang but there was no answer, so he sent a WhatsApp message which delivered.
Albert, who was led in evidence by the Lagos State Director for Public Prosecutions, Mrs Adeyinka Adeyemi, said he observed that the deceased was online, which showed on the WhatsApp ‘last seen’.
“I was surprised when he didn’t return my calls nor reply my messages.
The witness told the court that the phone of the deceased was tracked and it was noticed that the phone was last used at University of Lagos guest house but at some point the tracking became difficult because the movement kept changing.
