A judge has ordered a psychiatric report on a Nigerian man accused of obstructing deportation, claiming garda\u00ed mixed him up with one of his nine identical brothers.<\/p>\n
In the first prosecution of its kind, Sam Okwuoha (28) was due to face trial at Dublin District Court<\/a> on Wednesday.<\/p>\n The case stems from a Garda National Immigration Bureau<\/a> (GNIB) investigation.<\/p>\n Jade O\u2019Brien, barrister for the defence, applied to vacate the non-jury hearing due to concerns about Okwuoha\u2019s fitness in relation to the proceedings.<\/p>\n She told Judge Michael Ramsey that the defence had been unable to attend personal consultations to inquire into her client\u2019s wellbeing while on remand at Mountjoy Prison<\/a>. Counsel added that the accused has since been moved to Cloverhill Prison.<\/p>\n Ramsey noted there was no objection from the prosecution to adjourn the hearing. He directed the preparation of a psychiatric report on the accused and adjourned the case for four weeks, when it will be listed for mention.<\/p>\n The accused, dressed in a grey tracksuit and red shirt, was remanded in continuing custody.<\/p>\n The alleged \u201cdecuplet\u201d claims his arrest is a case of mistaken identity, leading to his being charged with a single offence under the Immigration Act 1999.<\/p>\n He is accused of obstructing deportation on March 6th at Dublin Airport, after the Minister of Justice, Equality and Law Reform signed the order to remove him on January 6th.<\/p>\n