ABSTRACT
The chapter engages in a conceptual definition of the concept of witnesses as beneficiaries of witness protection. It identifies a broad range of categories of witnesses to include eyewitnesses, justice collaborators, victim-witnesses, informants, whistle-blowers, and expert and official witnesses. The chapter examines the role of eligibility criteria in defining witnesses within the context of witness protection. It includes insights on how witnesses are defined within the Nigerian practices and the legal objections to the inclusion of certain categories of persons as witnesses to be protected. The chapter also considers the suitability of the defendant’s witness as a beneficiary of witness protection, using the heuristic tools developed in chapter 2. The chapter also argues that since witness protection evolved within specific circumstances, so also are witnesses to be defined within specific parameters.
