Clinton Kalu, a native of Ndinwafor in Okigwe Local Government Area of Imo State, walked out from the Port Harcourt Maximum Prison after being wrongly imprisoned for 27 years.
According to a report by PUNCH, the 56-year-old consultant criminologist was roped into a murder case in April 1992 by some undisclosed persons while trying to resolve a dispute involving his in-laws. That marked the beginning of his journey in ‘hell’.
As time passed by, the then 29-year-old man, who was full of life, fought hard to prove to the court that he was framed up by those, who felt threatened by his rise in life. Recalling how he was sentenced to death by hanging or firing squad, Kalu said, “Twenty-seven years ago, some people were accused of stealing generating plant and fluorescent tubes.
“They are my in-laws. After the court decided the case, we heard that somebody was murdered in the compound where my sister married. But I was arrested because the thought by those behind my ordeal was that I was trying to resolve a land dispute in favour of one person. “I was taken to Okigwe Police Station; from there I was taken to Owerri in Imo State and from there we were charged to court in April 1992.
“I was detained in Owerri Prison. I was at the tribunal for seven years because those behind my ordeal added armed robbery to the case. They believed I was a strong man and wanted to destroy me. “They brought false witnesses to testify against me at the tribunal. I was later taken to a regular court where I was condemned to death. “So, from Owerri, I was transferred to Port Harcourt prison. At the Port Harcourt prisons, I waited for many years for the hangman’s noose.
“Nevertheless, I went to the Appeal Court to appeal the case but my lawyer messed up the case. Then I decided to proceed to the Supreme Court, where after 27 years in prison, I got victory. “I was imprisoned for 27 years for committing no offence. On April 5 this year, I was discharged and acquitted.” He cautioned that with the Supreme Court declaring him innocent, it would be wrong for anybody to tag him an ex-convict.
“If you describe me as an ex-convict, I won’t be happy with you. After 27 years, they found out that I committed no crime. Do you know that they would have killed me and after many years, they would have found out that I did not commit the crime?
“Something like that happened somewhere in Europe. In my own case, the Supreme Court found out that I was innocent and freed me. “Any person that refers to me as an ex-convict, I will look at the person as a fool. I will just ask God to forgive him,” he said.
While in incarceration, Kalu lost his mother; and coupled with the fact that he was not married and had no immediate family (children), he struggled to fight loneliness even though his relatives, who also believed he was incapable of hurting anybody, let alone killing a person, visited him in prison from time to time.
On whether he would avenge the injustice done to him, Kalu explained that he had been a changed man after gaining knowledge about the ways of Christ, adding that vengeance was not in his thoughts. He pointed out that though he felt insulted and humiliated by the court verdict, which sentenced him to death, he later realised while in prison that his tribulation was to serve a purpose.
“God has dealt with those behind my ordeal the way he wants to deal with them; I don’t have any business with them. “God has already dealt with the man, who stood as a complainant in my case. “On whether I will seek compensation from the police for falsely accusing me, I don’t know about that for now.
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