The Periscope reporter
* Maiha citizenry reacts to N1m ransom for life, says it is unbelievable as the case is unbearably unforgivable
* Killer cop paying N1m as ransom for murder to be spared before the law! – Youth group
The killer police, Corporal Richard Japheth who murdered a 20-year old commercial tricyclist, Arabo Dauda Tambajam for allegedly refusing to pay N100 at a checkpoint in Maiha local government area, northern senatorial district of Adamawa state, northeast Nigeria, has been forgiven by the deceased parents.
Japheth who is dismissed from police service and is currently under police custody, is said to be forgiven last week when his parents paid the sum of one million naira for late Dauda’s parents to obtain a court affidavit withdrawing the murder case, the Periscope investigation can reveal.
The negotiation aimed at shielding the alleged criminal and that which late Arabo could hardly forgive the betrayers of justice as negotiators, was done in utmost cult like secrecy, an eavesdropper reported for the Periscope investigation.
The local government chairman who has been trying tirelessly to ensure justice has taken its course and other stakeholders in the community along with the Human Rights group engaged in the case were not even informed, not to talk of being invited to the humiliating negotiation.
“I’m not aware of the paltry one million paid as compensation for life. I’m not aware of any negotiation even though I’m the chief accounting and the chief security officer,” Maiha LG Chairman, Dr Idi Ali Amin said.
The people of Maiha who would not want to believe that such an embarrassingly brothel like negotiation taken place, because, as they said, Arabo was a respected and responsible human being not a dog to be estimated humiliatingly low.
“It is unbelievable as the case in unbearably unforgeable. It is, to say the least unfortunate but intolerable that the parents of a killer for N100 police officer paid N1m as ransom for murder to be spared their criminal son who betrayed the state before law.”
“It is also surprising that the parents will humiliated their son posthumously, when they should join in supporting the community, the security and the law to ensure justice.
“Compensation for life is now N50m not N1m. The negotiators are conspirators against justice. They have also embarrassingly shortchanged the entire family,” the youth group said.
One who was a witness to the negotiation, on condition of anonymity, confirmed to the Periscope that N1m was paid as ransom for the deceased whose life was wasted simply for refusing to pay N100 as demanded by a drunk on duty, trigger happy police corporal.
The source revealed that the parents of the corporal killer started a fish type of negotiation; they would pay N25,000, then upgraded to N250,000 but when one of the negotiators who felt humiliated with the pricing “spoke words into their heads”, they raised the price to N1,000,000, enough they conceived to facilitate the family to have a court affidavit obtained, withdrawing the case from the court of law to be able to provide for their criminal son, a court cushion for soft landing.
However, as the Periscope has earlier explained, there are three sides of Japheth’s offence; the first is to God who forbids any killing without reason. The second is to the state that entrusts responsibility to maintain peace and ensure security by protecting lives and property. The third is to the deceased and family subjected to mourning.
The deceased can not be heard; so he cannot forgive, the state can hardly forgive culpable homicide.
The ugly incident, which occurred on Monday, 1st June, 2020 at about 2pm has instigated community outcry for justice. It was loudly and widely echoed by the media.