Admin l Friday, May 17, 2019
LAGOS, Nigeria – It was a day of freedom for Chinese national, Zhen Zhen(49), who has been set free by a Lagos High Court, sitting in Ikeja for willful damage of property situated at No. 28, Bamishile St., Allen Avenue, Lagos, belonging to one Ernest Uwaneyem.
Justice Hakeem Oshodi ordered that she be released from prison custody after agreeing to amended charge of willful damage in the plea bargain agreement she entered with the prosecution.
In his judgement, Justice Hakeem Oshodi said the 47 year old Chinese who was orginally charged with arson, contrary to section 314(a) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State pleaded guilty upon arraignment on 11 January, 2018.
He told the court that after taking her plea during trial, during which evidence such as photographs and hard drugs recovered from scene were tendered by the prosecutor, ASP Alloh, the defendant offered to voluntarily plead guilty under a plea bargain agreement
Upon arraignment today on amended charge of Willful damage of property, Zhen Zhen, whose charges were read in Mandarin pleaded guilty, upon which Justice Hakeem Oshodi entered his judgement.
He said the mandatory terms for Willful damage under the Criminal Law of Lagos state was 2 years imprisonment and that Zhen Zhen and that the defendant had overstayed in prison.
He alluded to the fact that the defence lawyer in his allucution pleaded for leniency and that the defendant is remorseful. Recall that after the charge was read to her, during arraignment, she said, “I cannot say yes or no to the charge”.
According to the prosecution then led by Mr Tiwaloju Aderoju, Zhen committed the offence on July 5, 2015 at Ernest Place, No. 28, Bamishile St., Allen Avenue, Lagos. The defendant wilfully set fire to the building of Mr Ernest Uwaneyem and destroyed part of the building,” Aderoju alleged.
According to the prosecution, the offence violated Section 341 of the Criminal Law of Lagos 2011 which prescribes a seven-year sentence for anyone found guilty of the offence.
