The Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City has sentenced five persons to death by hanging for their involvement in the abduction and murder of a legal practitioner, Iyoha Osobase.
The court also discharged and acquitted one of the defendants, Solomon Esuike, after holding that the prosecution failed to prove the charges against him beyond reasonable doubt.
Delivering judgment in Charge No. B/CD/136C/22, The State versus Valentine Dibie and Five Others, Justice Efe Ikpomwonba ruled that the prosecution successfully established its case against five of the defendants on charges of conspiracy, kidnapping and murder.
The judge held that the evidence presented before the court was sufficient to secure conviction, stressing that the guilt of the five defendants had been proved beyond reasonable doubt. He accordingly imposed the death sentence by hanging.
However, the court found that the evidence against Esuike was not strong enough to sustain a conviction. He was therefore discharged and acquitted.
“It is clear that the prosecution successfully proved its case against five of you beyond reasonable doubt. However, the evidence presented against the second defendant, Solomon Esuike, was insufficient to sustain the charges against him. He is hereby discharged and acquitted,” Justice Ikpomwonba stated.
The judgment brings closure to a long running case that has attracted attention within the Edo State legal community since the killing of Osobase in 2020.
Court records showed that the victim was abducted, assaulted and later killed, before being buried in a shallow grave in the Aduwawa area of Benin City on May 9, 2020.
Counsel to Esuike, led by Douglas Ogbankwa, alongside A.P. Uzor and S.A. Idemudia, successfully challenged the prosecution’s case as it concerned their client, leading to his acquittal.
The prosecution, led by a former Edo State Director of Public Prosecutions, Orobosa Okunbor, had called witnesses and tendered evidence during the trial.
The case also drew public attention, with calls for justice from senior legal and political figures, including the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo (SAN), who urged thorough investigation and prosecution of those responsible.
