By LUCY OSUIZIGBO-OKECHUKWU

A High Court sitting in Nnewi, Anambra State, has convicted two men, Chidozie Obinna and Ifeanyi Onyido, for criminal conspiracy, kidnapping and causing grievous harm to a businessman, Chief Lawrence Ezeifeka.

Delivering judgment on Wednesday, Justice Vincent Agbata of the Nnewi Judicial Division, found the defendants guilty of the offences and sentenced them to death by hanging.

Obinna, the first defendant, was convicted and sentenced in absentia after he allegedly absconded while on bail during the trial.

The court heard that the convicts, alongside other members of their gang who are still at large, attacked Ezeifeka at his residence in Ekwulumili, Nnewi South Local Government Area, on Dec. 12, 2020.

According to the prosecution, the assailants assaulted the victim, threw him from the first floor of his building and abducted him to an unknown location.

The victim was held captive for four days and regained his freedom after his family paid a ransom of N7.5 million.

The prosecution further told the court that operatives of the Anambra State Police Command, working in collaboration with the Department of State Services (DSS), tracked and arrested the defendants.

Lead prosecuting counsel, Mrs Mary Ukaekwe-Onyeaharam, urged the court to continue Obinna’s trial in absentia following his disappearance while on bail.

She relied on provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Anambra State, 2022, and the Anambra State Practice Direction for Criminal Matters, 2023.

Four prosecution witnesses testified during the trial, including the victim, the Secretary of Ekwulumili Town Union, the victim’s son who delivered the ransom and the investigating police officer.

In his defence, Onyido denied involvement in the crime and claimed that he was also a victim of kidnapping.

However, Justice Agbata held that evidence before the court showed that Onyido received part of the ransom and failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for the funds.

The judge ruled that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, noting that the evidence adduced by the prosecution was neither effectively challenged nor contradicted by the defence.

Consequently, the court convicted and sentenced both defendants for their roles in the offences. (NAN)

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