BREAKING! Manslaughter: Ibinabo granted bail

Embattled ex-beauty queen, Ibinabo
Fiberesima got of temporary relief as Court of
Appeal sitting in Lagos granted her bail
pending the determination of her appeal at the
Supreme Court.
Justice Deborah Oluwayemi of the State High
Court had in 2009 convicted Fiberesima of
manslaughter, holding that her reckless
driving was responsible for an auto crash,
which claimed the life of one Dr. Giwa Suraj
on the Lekki-Epe Expressway.
While sentencing Fiberesima to five years
imprisonment, Justice Oluwayemi overruled
the decision of the State Magistrates’ Court
which earlier ordered her to pay N100,000 for
the offence.
Having dissatisfied with Justice Oluwayemi’s
verdict, the convict approached Court of
Appeal to nullify the verdict but the court also
affirmed it.
Again, the embattled Nollywood actress
approached Supreme Court and the matter is
pending before the court.
Besides, Fiberesima filed an application
before the Court of Appeal, prayed the court
to release her on bail pending when the
Supreme Court would hear and determine her
appeal against the appellate court’s judgment.
In an affidavit of urgency filed in support of
her bail application before the Court of
Appeal, one Victor Eden said Fiberesima had
just undergone a surgery for breast cancer
and was still under the watch of her doctors.
Eden said Fiberesima’s surgical wound had
yet to properly heal, adding that the actress
was afraid that her life might be endangered if
kept in the prison custody.
He said it would best serve the interest of
justice to release Fiberesima on bail while the
Supreme Court’s decision in her case was
being awaited
Lagos State Government did not opposed the
application but urged the court to use it
discretion.
The state represented by Mrs. Rotimi Odutola
held that what real concern the state was the
pursuit of the appeal filed by the convict.
She said the basis of the appeal was not on
whether Feberesima was guilty or not, adding
the actress did not disputed her conviction
but only appeal the sentence.
After listing to argument of both parties,
Justice Sidi Bage, who led the three-man
panel granted the convict bail in the sum of
two million naira with two sureties in the like
sum
Justice Samuel Osuji who read the lead
judgment held that there was nothing in the
record of the court that the convict once jump
bail.
And there was enough evidence before that
the convict has health challenge
However, one of the three-man panel, Justice
Y B Nimba did not agree with the panel, she
held that no special circumstance exist for the
grant of bail.