Absence of the convicted kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans, on Wednesday stalled the hearing of a suit filed against him by a kidnap victim, Donatus Duru, before the Lagos High Court, sitting at Tafawa Balewa Square.

Duru, in the suit filed in 2018, is demanding the return of the £223,000 he paid as ransom while in the custody of the kidnap kingpin.The claimant is also demanding the sum of N50m as damages.

At the resumed hearing of the matter on Wednesday, the defendant’s counsel, Mr Amobi Nzelu, told the court that at the last proceeding, on June 29, the court granted his application to become the counsel for the defendant.Nzelu said he, however, wrote a letter to the court asking that the comptroller of prisons be directed to produce the defendant in court.

He said he was surprised that the defendant was not produced in court.

However, the claimant’s counsel, Mr. D. O. Obiora said the case was adjourned till Wednesday for the defence to open its case.

In his remarks, Obiora expressed dissatisfaction that a copy of the letter written by the defendant to the court was not served on him.

“We are parties in this suit. We should be given a copy of the letter,” he said.

The defendant’s counsel, however, said it was an oversight. “It was not done to hurt the claimant.”

Therefore, Justice Kayode Ogunjobi, after listening to their submissions, said the

letter written for the defendant to be produced in court was not acted upon by the court’s registrar.