Tina Amanda
A High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has sentenced Zakariah Dauda, Inah-Inah Edet, Sunday Pius and Isaac Marcus, to death by hanging on the neck for the murder of late Mrs Esther Edomobi, at her residence in Cocaine Estate, Obio/Akpor local government area, on 24 May, 2008.
The four accused had been standing trial since 2008 for conspiracy, armed robbery and murder of late Mrs Esther Edomobi who was the boss to the 1st accused Zachariah Dauda, employed as a security guard at her residence.
The trial Judge, Justice Weli Chechey, found the four Defendants guilty as charged for conspiring amongst themselves to murder the deceased and carting away her property and cash worth millions of pounds.
The court ruled that the evidence presented before it showed that the Defendants killed late Mrs Edomobi in a gruesome manner, by hitting her hard severally across the face which tore her face open and plucked out her right eye socket with dangerous weapon.
Justice Chechey held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt by judicious discharge of its onus operandi, and thereby convicted the four accused to death by hanging on the neck till death.
In an interview with our correspondent, Principal State Counsel Rivers State Ministry of Justice, Nathaniel Ukotije-Mbaba, said it was a sound judgement delivered as the court was able to cover all grounds leaving no room for doubt, should the Defendants decide to test the judgement at the appellant court.
On their parts, Nemi Erama and Comfort Amadi, Counsels representing the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Defendantd, said the decision of the court is not in any wrong, while noting that they will have to appeal the judgement of the court.
Also, the deceased husband, Engineer Boniface Edomobi thanked the court for allowing justice to be served for the gruesome murder of his late wife, while describing the judgement as outstanding as justice delayed is not justice denied.
He, however expressed pain that the death of his wife has brought so much pain to him and his four children who are all boys and the eldest one was about ten years old in 2008 when his wife was murdered, just as he thanked God for seeing him through the fourteen years of the case trial.
Recall that the 1st Defendant, Zakariah Dauda was intercepted along Oyigbo -Aba express road at midnight breaking 25 May, 2000, by Mobile Police officers conducting stop and search at the Imo River boundary between Rivers State and Abia State, why fleeing to his home town with the deceased Toyota Avanza car and lots of properties.
Through his arrest, the Police were able to arrest the three other accused who conspired to murder late Mrs Esther Edomobi, and properties stolen including cash worth millions were recovered and presented as exhibit before the court.
