SANUSI JCA (Delivering the Lead Judgment): At the Makurdi High Court in Benue State (hereinafter referred to as “the lower court”), the two appellants herein who were police officers were tried along with their other colleagues of various criminal offences. The learned trial Judge, A. J. Ikongbeh J. (as he then was) in his judgment delivered on 7thAugust, 1998 convicted the 1st appellant of offences under section 122, section 246 and section 140 of the Penal Code and sentenced him to various terms of imprisonment and fines. The second appellant was also convicted of the offence of giving false information to a public servant, under section 140 of the Penal Code and was sentenced to three months imprisonment and a fine of forty naira.
Both appellants were dissatisfied with the judgment of the lower court and appealed to this court. The facts of the case are briefly as follows: On 11/1/97, the 2nd appellant, a rural divisional police officer deployed the first appellant, a police serg…