Defamation: I wrote my statement under duress, threats and intimidation, journalist tells court 

Trial of the two Delta State-based Journalists, Joe Ogbodu, Managing Editor of BIGPEN online newspapers and Prince Amour Udemude, an investigative Journalist on Wednesday took a new twist with Udemude informing the court how he was forced by a police prosecutor, Theresa Okpor to write a statement dictated by her.

The two Journalists were arrested by the police from the Delta state criminal investigation department, (CID) in October 2019, following a petition by one Sam Ogrih, alleging defamation and were arraigned for a misdemeanour to wit defamatory at the Magistrate court four, sitting in Asaba, the state capital.

Journalists in October 2019 reported a bloody crisis by some youths who go by the codename “freedom fighters” at Uzere community, Isoko South Local Government Area of the state over N20 million largesse from the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) and allegations of the youth sponsorship by the former Chief of Defence Staff, General Alexander Ogomudia, and one Sam Ogrih which they had since debunked.

In his defence Wednesday, during the continuation of the case marked No CMA/425c/2019, between the commissioner of police vs Prince Amour Udemude and Joe Ogbodu, Udemude told the court that on that fateful day of his arrest at the police headquarters, the leader of the team and prosecutor, Theresa Okpor, forced him to write a statement she was dictating to him.

“I was bullied, threatened and intimidated by the police officer, Theresa Okpor, who was taking my statement, she forced me to write what she was dictating to me which I vehemently refused but she insisted that I must write her dictated statement or I will be thrown into the cell to languish. At one point, she was forcing me to say the story was a force that I was paid to tarnish the images of Ogomudia and Ogrih. Because of her resistance, I spent several hours writing my statement. At a time when I said I was done, she took a look at the statement and insisted that I was not done, that I must continue and write all that she was telling me to write. She continues to bully, threatened and intimidated me all through my statement.”

According to Udemude, who was been led in defence by his counsel, Chuks Ebu, his story was based on what the fleeing Uzere community indigenes told him concerning the bloody crisis in the community.

“The story was based on what the fleeing Uzere community indigenes told us. They alleged that the freedom fighters unleashing the mayhem in the community were been sponsored by the
former Chief of Defence Staff, General Alexander Ogomudia, and one Sam Ogrih. I don’t Ogrih and Ogomudia, I have never met them before in all of my life. I sorted for their contacts and they were contacted for their side of the story. And they both debunked the allegations of sponsoring the armed youths in the community and they even went ahead to thank me for deeming it fit to reach them for a balanced report. After a few days, the next thing I saw from a petition of defamation from Ogrih.”

After the defence, the presiding magistrate, B.N. Anumadu, (Mrs), called on the plaintiff (Ogrih’s) counsel, M.A. Omakor, for cross-examination of the defendant, Udemude, but he said time may not permit him and the presiding magistrate, therefore adjourned the case till November 23, 2022, for cross-examination.

Our correspondent reliably gathered that the case had earlier been abandoned before the plaintiff’s counsel, M.A. Omakor applied to the state ministry of justice through a fiat to take over the prosecution of the case and currently, the police prosecutor, Theresa Okpor, who had abandoned the case is now standing as a witness in the case to the plaintiff.