The Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City has discharged and acquitted the Benin City Manager of DHL, Mr. Nuhu Omokide, over his alleged involvement in a missing parcel bound for the United Kingdom.

Delivering judgment, Justice E. G. Adekanmbi set aside the earlier ruling of Chief Magistrate Afe Osamudiamen, describing it as inconsistent with the legal provisions guiding the five-count charge brought against the appellant.

In the case marked B/10CA/2025 between Nuhu Omokide and the Commissioner of Police, the court held that the complaint was directed at DHL as a corporate entity, not an individual staff member. Justice Adekanmbi noted that no law holds employees personally liable for a company’s actions unless there is clear evidence of criminal conduct carried out under the cover of the organization.

The court further found that the prosecution failed to establish any direct criminal act against Omokide. It maintained that his role as the branch manager did not extend beyond administrative responsibilities within the Benin office.

According to the judgment, evidence presented before the lower court, including DHL tracking records, showed that the parcel had left the Benin office, indicating it was no longer in the custody of the appellant.

Justice Adekanmbi also faulted the trial court for concluding that Omokide appropriated the contents of the parcel, which reportedly included academic certificates and professional documents. He emphasized that under Nigeria’s adversarial legal system, the burden of proof rests on the prosecution, not the defendant.

The judge ruled that the case merely established that a parcel went missing, a matter tied to the company’s delivery obligation, and not to any proven personal negligence or criminal conduct by the appellant.

He held that the prosecution failed to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt.

Consequently, the court nullified the conviction and sentence handed down by the lower court, ordered the discharge and acquittal of Omokide, and directed that the sum of N250,000 paid as fine be refunded to him.