Matthew Okeke, 42, of Ministers’ Hill, Maitama, Abuja was on Thursday arraigned in a Wuse Zone 2 Magistrates’ Court for allegedly setting his fiancee’s house on fire, after stealing from her.
Okeke is standing trial on a three-count charge of mischief, wrongful restraint and theft.
The police prosecutor, Corporal Paul Anigbo, told the court that Blessing Daniel of Tudun-Wada Village, Lugbe, Abuja, reported the matter at the Lugbe Police Station on September 12.
Anigbo said the accused entered Daniel’s house and stole her clothes and some pairs of shoes worth N150,000, locked her inside the room with a padlock and set it on fire.
The prosecutor said that during investigation, the stolen clothes were recovered from the accused.
He said that the offences contravened the provisions of Sections 337, 256, and 287 of the Penal Code, but the accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The Magistrate, Grace Adebayo, admitted the accused to bail in the sum of N400,000 with a surety in like sum.
Adebayo ordered that the surety must be a lawyer with not less than two years post-call to bar.
She added that the surety must depose to an affidavit of means and adjourned the case to October 14 for hearing.
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