Edo Court Delivers Death Sentence Against Four Kidnappers
By Nafiu Muhammad Lema
A Special Court for Kidnapping and Cultism sitting in Benin City, Edo State, has sentenced four members of a suspected kidnapping syndicate to death by hanging or lethal injection.
The convicts, identified as Marvelous Isaac, 32; Gift Raphael, 27; Wisdom Michael; and Rufus Michael, were prosecuted on an 11-count charge involving kidnapping, conspiracy, armed robbery and unlawful possession of firearms, among other offences.
Delivering judgment, Justice Aigbona Terry Momodu held that the prosecution had established the allegations against the defendants beyond reasonable doubt.
The judge consequently sentenced the four convicts to death by hanging or lethal injection.
The syndicate was said to have abducted a woman at the Vegetable Market, off Airport Road, Benin City, during an incident in which her husband reportedly managed to escape.
The establishment of the Special Court followed the incident at the Vegetable Market, with Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo ordering its creation to facilitate the speedy prosecution of kidnapping and cultism cases.
The latest judgment underscores the state government’s position on the prosecution of serious crimes and efforts to strengthen the judicial response to kidnapping and related offences.
The court’s decision brings the case against the four-member syndicate to a conclusion at the trial stage, subject to any applicable legal processes arising from the judgment.
