Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo, the state capital has sentenced a native doctor, Sunday Andrew, to death by hanging for kidnapping a clergy, Pastor Bassey Utit, and his brother, Chief Israel Utit.
According to the case file, Andrew, alias Sunday Akpan Adede, a native of Ikono local government area, was said to have conspired with others now at large to commit the offence at Nkemba Street, Uyo on November 29, 2015, and harboured the victims in his shrine at Ikot Enua village, in his Ikono LGA, while negotiating for N50 million as ransom.
The convicted native doctor was standing trial with the first defendant, Ibe Emeka, on a six-count charge of conspiracy, kidnapping and armed robbery, in which he was found guilty, while the court discharged and acquitted Emeka, over the failure of the prosecution to prove the ingredients of kidnapping, armed robbery and conspiracy against the convict.
Emeka, a native of neighbouring Abia State, recalled that he was invited to Uyo by his friend, he simply identified as “Papa”, only to be taken to a drinking joint along Nkemba Street, in the company of one Ukeme Amos alias “Bishop”, the leader of the gang and Jude Ihemekwa alias “Method”, who is currently undergoing trial for another kidnapping case in Uyo.
He explained that, “while at Nkemba Street, the gang saw a black Toyota Corolla car and double-crossed it, and before I could know, Bishop and Papa dragged the two brothers out of their car to another car and instructed me to go to the front seat, while Bishop and the victims were kept at the back of the car, and Papa took the victims’ car away.
In the about one-hour judgment, the trial judge, Justice Gabriel Ette, described Emeka as “an innocent man and a victim who happened to be in the company of wrong guys in the wrong place and at the wrong time by inadvertence,” adding that “the only difference between him and the other victims was that no ransom was placed on his head.”
Justice Ette, therefore, held that “it is in evidence that the first defendant did not run away upon their escape, but followed the victims to their residence, got refreshed, had his bath and stayed behind with them till the Department of State Services operatives (DSS) showed up.”
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