The much-anticipated arraignment of Mike Nwaukoni, the principal suspect and 5th defendant in a high-profile case, Charge No FHC/ASB/18C/2024 involving terrorism, attempted murder, and inciting native war, took an anticlimactic turn on Tuesday at the Federal High Court in Asaba.
The courtroom, often a theatre of high drama, was noticeably subdued as Nwaukoni himself failed to make an appearance, leaving his co-accused to face the music alone.
According to a palace source, for a man who has successfully played a game of legal hide-and-seek for over a year after being listed in the original charge as being “at large” by the Nigerian Police, one might have expected Nwaukoni’s grand entrance to be nothing short of cinematic.
But instead, the lead actor in this unfolding legal saga was conspicuously absent.
However, his private lawyer, Barrister Chioma, was present to assure the court that his client would be present on the next adjourned date for his arraignment.
The learned counsel also made a polite request for the prosecution to furnish his client with the proof of evidence—one can only assume Nwaukoni would like a sneak peek at the legal fireworks awaiting him.
Meanwhile, those who did show up—Barrister Francis Okolie, Eugene Izediunor, Eluemunor Adigwe, and John Nwaona—stood in the dock as the charges were read out.
Unlike previous hearings where a boisterous crowd and an army of defence lawyers swarmed the courtroom like it was a political rally, Tuesday’s attendance was eerily thin.
No chants, no banners, no legal entourage in matching silk robes—just the stark reality of a looming trial.
Observers noted the shift in atmosphere; the usual defiant bravado seemed to have faded, replaced with a quiet realization that the long arm of the law had finally stretched far enough.
With some of the charges carrying life imprisonment sentences, perhaps the gravity of the situation is finally sinking in.
It is worth recalling that some of Nwaukoni’s supporters were in deep denial when he was finally arrested and granted bail by the police before the filing of the new amended charges.
Their disbelief quickly turned to silence as the charges filed against him became impossible to ignore. Among those charges is a particularly audacious one—an attempt to dethrone the Obi of Ogwashi-Uku, a fact Nwaukoni himself brazenly confirmed in his advertorial last year.
The presiding judge, showing commendable patience, adjourned the case to April 3, the day Nwaukoni is finally expected to take his place in the dock with other defendants.
The said palace source continued: “After avoiding legal proceedings for over a year, all eyes will be on whether he makes good on his lawyer’s promise or if another episode of “The Great Courtroom Disappearance” awaits.
“One thing is certain: the Inspector General of Police seems determined to see this case through. And if April 3 does indeed mark the beginning of Nwaukoni’s long-awaited day in court, the legal spectators remain on the edge of their seats, popcorn in hand, awaiting the next act of this serious criminal trial which is becoming a judicial drama.”
