PROOFS OF ALIBI

PROOFS OF ALIBI

Saheed Afeez Ayinde

DEEMLAWFUL

No doubt, the basis of every conviction in the court of law that poised to serve the dish of Justice lies the benefit of doubt given to Accused party in the criminal cases to either prove or disprove.

The Law is however lenient to the Accused person when it comes to Criminal cases. Hence, the innocence of the accused is presumed until proven beyond reasonable doubt whose the burden is upon the Prosecution.

However, The LAW also gave the Accused escape route to wash himself off. Hence, the weapon of Alibi. This weapon connote the Accused person proving his total innocence by tendering his absentia off the crime scene during the Time, Day, and Venue of committing the offences. Hence, that he was somewhere else as at when the crime was taking place and not in any way took part in the commission of the crime.

As desperate as this Escape route of Alibi, the accused must however provide in precise and specific in terms of the place that the Accused was and the person or persons he was with and possibly what he was doing there at the material time. The details of his exact whereabout and not the burden of the Prosecution nor the Police. however, the police will only confirm the veracity of the Alibi by investigation.

In Ochemaje v. State, where sir Tobi, JSC expatiated as follows

It is not the law that the police should be involved in a wildgoose chase for the whereabouts of the Accused person at the time the crime was committed. No. That is not the function or role of the Police.

The Accused must give specihc particulars of where he was at the time of the material time to enable the Police move straight to that place to carry out the investigation required by law.