Chiemelie Ezeobi
Mr. Peter Nielsen, the Danish man who allegedly murdered his Nigerian wife, Zainab Alizee and her three-year-old daughter, Petra, on April 5, 2018, at their residence in Banana Island, Ikoyi Lagos, was yesterday remanded at the Ikoyi prison by the court.
Nielsen was arraigned before the Yaba Magistrate court 2, on a two count charge of murder by the Lagos State Police Command, although he pleaded not guilty to both counts.
Magistrate K.B Ayeye, however said that the suspect should be remanded in prison custody until May 8, 2018, when the advice from the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) would have been received.
An earlier statement by the Lagos State Police Command on the update of the matter read ” The Lagos State Police Command hereby notifies the general public that it had decided to take Mr. Peter Nielson, the Danish man alleged to have murdered his wife Mrs. Zainab Nielson and daughter, Petra Nielsen to court on two counts charge of murder.
“The Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Edgal Imohimi, has directed that the case be charged to court based on the findings of the crime scene detectives sent to the apartment of the Nielsens after the alleged murder was committed, the preliminary autopsy report and the result of DNA analysis carried out by forensic experts
“A duplicate copy of the murder casefile has been sent to the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP), for legal advice.”
Meanwhile, the defence counsel, Frank Udoka Amah, said although his client is a suspect, he is also a foreigner.
He said, “Weare Nigerians and we understand the emotions around it. The same day this happen, the victim was physically battered by people from the side of the victims.
“We have been threatehend over and over again for merely doing our job. It is important for us know that the rights guaranteed under chapter four of our constitution is called Human Rights and not Nigerian rights.
“Every human being is entitled to them. so there is a presumption of innocence until proven guilty. It is important we know what happened.
“Our job as a lawyer is not just to defend but also to help with the administration of justice. It is also important to know that Mr Nielsen is also a victim in this matter. He has lost a wife and daughter.
“We are trying to find out exactly what happened and we are cooperating with the Nigeria police in their investigation andwe believe that they will look at every angle.
“It is their job to look at the CCTV cameras because there are a lot of CCTV cameras where this incident happened. It is their job to look at them and we have every reason to say that what the CCTV cameras are saying is consistent with what our client said.
“There are a lot of dimensions to it but in the interest of fairness and justice we look at all the sides and not carry out a mob action.
“What we saw was that at the Ikoyi police station, he was battered. There was blood coming from his face and he has an injury on his fingers. I saw him battered by some boys who were obviously angry that their sister is dead.”
