Judges deny Ibinabo Fiberesima bail

Actress and former beauty queen Ibinabo Fiberesima, who is currently serving a five-year jail term, was denied bail by the Court of Appeal in Lagos on Thursday.

The three-man panel of judges, headed by Justice U.I. Ndukwe-Anyanwu, ruled that the application was incomplete, as the appellant failed to attach to her application copies of the judgment affirming the five-year jail sentence imposed on her by a Lagos High Court.

Presiding Justice Ndukwe-Anyanwu said the only option left was to strike out the application or adjourn it to a further date for a hearing.

Consequently, Nnaemeka Amaechina, Ms. Fiberesima’s counsel, asked for an adjournment to enable him to correct the bail application. The court subsequently adjourned the matter to April 7.

Meanwhile, Ms. Fiberesima asked the Supreme Court to set aside the judgement of the lower court that was affirmed by the appellate court.

In her notice of appeal, she stated that the Court of Appeal erred when it affirmed the alteration by the High Court of Lagos State by setting aside the option of a N100,000 fine and substituting it with a prison term of five years.

The appellant further stated that the Court of Appeal erred when it affirmed the interference by the High Court with the exercise of discretion by the Magistrate’s Court.

Ms. Fiberesima added that the judgment of the Court of Appeal was unreasonable and could not be supported, with regard to the evidence presented before the court.

In a six-paragraph affidavit of urgency deposed to by one Victor Eden, the deponent stated that Ms. Fiberesima is currently recovering breast tumor-removal surgery and requires medical attention.

“Her wound has not fully healed and as such she is afraid that her continued stay in prison may endanger her life, as she will not have access to special medical attention,” he stated.

The deponent stated further that it would be in the interest of justice and for her health to admit Ms. Fiberesima to bail pending the hearing and determination of her appeal to the Supreme Court.

The actress was handed a five-year prison sentence by Justice Deborah Oluwayemi for reckless driving, which caused the death of one Dr. Giwa Suraj in an auto accident along the Lekki-Epe Expressway in Lagos. Dissatisfied, Ms. Fiberesima, in her amended appellant brief filed by Mr. Amaechina, urged the court to set aside the five-year sentence and restore the decision of the Magistrate’s Court.

The appellate court dismissed the actress’ appeal in its judgement delivered on February 11 and affirmed the decision of the Lagos High Court.