Lagos: Kidnap a person, bag life sentence, state Assembly assert

By Lanre Adesanya

Kidnappers henceforth risk death sentence in Lagos state,whenever Governor Akinwunmi Ambode’s signature is appended on the Bill for a Law to Provide  for  the Prohibition of the Act of Kidnapping and for Other Connected Purposes into law just passed by the State’s House of Assembly.

The passage was subsequent to the earlier adoption of a report presented by Mrs Adefunmilayo Tejuosho, the Chairman of the House Committee on Judiciary, Petitions, Human Rights and Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC).

The bill, aimed at ensuring zero tolerance for kidnapping, was finally passed after the third reading by the House.

The Speaker of the House, c, who read the 20-section bill one after the other for members’ approval, conducted a voice vote at the end before passage.

Obasa directed the Acting Clerk of the House, Mr Azeez Sanni to forward a clean copy of the bill to Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode for assent.

The bill states that any person, who kidnaps, abducts, detains, captures or takes another person by any means or tricks with intent to demand ransom or do anything against his/her will, commits an offence, and liable on conviction to death sentence.

The bill also criminalized attempt to kidnap, with a stipulated penalty of life imprisonment for anyone who make attempt to kidnap another person.

Also, the bill is against false representation to release a kidnapped or abducted person. This attracts seven years imprisonment.

The lawmakers also approved 25 years imprisonment to whoever threatens to kidnap another person through phone call, e-mail, text message or any other means of communication.

The bill provides that any person, who knowingly or wilfully allows or permits his premises, building or a place or belonging to which he has control of, to be used for the purposes of keeping a person kidnapped is guilty of an offence under the law and liable to 14 years imprisonment without an option of fine.

The House also adopted the recommendations of its Committee on Youths and Sports on a Bill for a Law to Provide for the Establishment of the Lagos State Sports Commission and for Connected Purpose after debates as resolution of the House.