Embattled Senator Dino Melaye was on Thursday ordered to be remanded in prison custody by a Senior Magistrate Court, sitting in Lokoja, Kogi State, till June 11.

This was after the senator was arraigned on a seven-count charges bordering on criminal conspiracy and unlawful possession of prohibited firearms, kidnapping, armed robbery and murder, political thuggery among others, before Mr. Suleyman Abdullahi of the Senior Magistrate Court 2.

The Mr. Alex Iziyon (SAN) had asked the court not to grant the bail request of the senator as he argued that the offences hainging on his neck carried more than three years sentence

Melaye’s counsel, Mike Ezekhome (SAN), made an oral application that the accused be admitted in bail.

While ruling on the bail application the court noted that the defence failed to submit a written request to the effect, while the prosecution made a written demand that the accused should not be granted bail.

The court therefore ordered that the accused should be remanded in police custody, while hearing was adjourned to 11June, 2018.

Melaye, who was granted bail by an Abuja Magistrate court, on Wednesday, after his arraignment on charges bordering on attempted suicide and escape from lawful custody, was brought into the court premises in a police ambulance marked: NPF 2214D, at exactly 9.15am, to face charges of criminal conspiracy and unlawful possession of prohibited firearms, kidnapping, armed robbery, murder, political thuggery and other violent crimes in Kogi State.

The lawmaker was brought to court in a police ambulance and was immediately stretchered into the court by policemen.

Before his arrival, heavily armed policemen had taken positions within and outside the court premises to forestall unforeseen circumstances.

The arrival of the senator in court attracted the attention of workers and others who came for transactions.

Other courts within the premises were also not sitting as at the time of this report.

Also, newsmen and others that had seated in court for hours were all asked to go out for security checks.

At the end, only few were allowed inside.

Details of charges against Melaye were unknown yet as at the time of filing this report.

The senator had, before being brought to court, first been taken to the SARS headquarters near the NTA office in Lokoja.

The Deputy Force Public Relations Officer, Force Headquarters, Aremu Adeniran (SP), on April 24 2018, while addressing pressmen, in Lokoja, said two suspects, Kabiru Salisu aka Osama (31) and Nuhu Salisu aka Small (25), who were arrested on January 19, 2018 at Ogojueje, in Dekina LGA of Kogi State, confessed to various crimes, some of which they linked to the senator.

Both suspects were to later escape from the ‘A’ Division police custody in Lokoja, along with four others, but were later re-arrested.

Before the commencement of his arraignment, pressmen were ordered out of the court room, but about four of them were later allowed entry.

Controversy however arose as to under which police custody should the senator be kept, even as his counsel was heard expressing fears that his client “will be killed”, if remanded anywhere in Kogi State.

The controversy was yet to abate as at the time of filing this report, as Senator Melaye remained on his hospital stretcher inside the court room.