…Eze, the vigilante member allegedly assaulted Ugbo and pushed him from the third floor of the building.
ANAMBRA, NIGERIA- The iNews Times | A High Court in the Ogbaru Judicial Division of Anambra State has sentenced vigilante member Onyeka Eze to death by hanging for killing phone repairer Anayo Ugbo.
The verdict was delivered on Thursday by the Administrative Judge, Justice Charles Okaa, who found Eze guilty of murder.
The prosecution, led by Assistant Chief State Counsel Chinyere Aganama-Onyeze of the Anambra State Ministry of Justice, told the court that Ugbo, from Ogboji Ezzagu in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, was repairing a phone at Shoe Site Market in Okpoko, Ogbaru LGA, on May 5, 2022, when Eze summoned him to meet their “boss.”
Ugbo requested time to complete the repair, but Eze insisted he accompany him to the vigilante office in a three-storey building within the market. Ugbo eventually went with his customer.
Upon arrival, the vigilante boss was absent. Ugbo asked to return to his shop, but Eze refused and demanded payment for a previous dispute over a damaged chair and spilled pot of pepper soup, an incident Ugbo denied involvement in.
Angered by the refusal, Eze allegedly assaulted Ugbo and pushed him from the third floor of the building. The fall caused severe head injuries, and Ugbo died two days later at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, where he had been receiving treatment.
During the trial, the prosecution called four witnesses: an eyewitness, a medical doctor who conducted the postmortem, a police inspector, and the victim’s brother, Sunday Ugbo. The brother testified that the victim recounted the incident to him in the presence of his customer and the eyewitness, Joshua Igwe.
Eze, who claimed innocence, testified in his defense but failed under cross-examination to prove he was a certified vigilante operative.
Justice Okaa held that the prosecution had proved the case beyond reasonable doubt. “The prosecution proved the case of murder against the defendant beyond reasonable doubt,” he stated.
Eze, from Enueiji in Ika North Local Government Area of Delta State, was 26 at the time of the incident and is now 30.
