A Magistrate’s Court sitting in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, yesterday ordered that a Fulani herdsman, Mohamodu Umar, be remanded in police custody for allegedly pasturing his cows on a maize and cassava plantation and allowing the livestock to feed on the crops.
Umar, aged 40, was arrested by the State Police Command and arraigned for allegedly damaging a farmland belonging to a farmer, Alhaji Isah Salawudeen.
Police prosecutor, Sergeant Adepoju Kayode, informed the court that the accused person committed the offence on February 7, 2020 at about 4:00 p.m. at Egbedi area in the state.
Kayode alleged that the defendant maliciously damaged the farmland by allowing his cows to gain access into it and grazed the five acres of farmland.
He said the farmer had planted maize and cassava valued N3 million before Umar’s cows destroyed it while grazing.
The prosecutor argued that the offence contravened Section 451 of the Criminal Code, Cap 34, Laws of Osun, 2002 and punishable under the same.
Meanwhile, the defendant pleaded not guilty to the one-count charge levelled against him by the police.
The defence counsel, Remigus Ngwu, prayed the court to grant his client bail in most liberal term.
But the prosecutor objected to the oral bail application on the ground that the accused does not have a feasible residence and that he would abuse the bail privilege if granted.
The Magistrate, A. O. Ajanaku, ordered the remand of the defendant in police custody for accelerated hearing of the matter.
Definite hearing to the case would come up today.
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