Murder Trial: Accused Framed Because Of N5m Promise

A prosecution witness in a murder case currently being tried by Justice Anumonye Onyinye of an Anambra state High Court sitting in Awka has admitted to the court that the first defendant who earlier implicated the second defendant in the offence later confessed to the police that he was actually procured to do so by the complainant, Mrs Miriam Eze.

In his testimony under-cross examination by the lawyers to the two defendants, Dr Nnamdi Chukwudebelu for second defendant (Nonso Nwoye), and Mrs Joy Nzekwe for first defendant (Chibueze Izuegbunam), the second witness, Inspector Peter Oranga (Investigation Police Officer, IPO) admitted the two contradicting statements made to the police by the first defendant in the case against the second defendant.

The second defendant had before the court granted him bail about a month ago spent about four years in the Awka Correctional Centre awaiting trial over the offence.

Answering questions under-cross examination on Friday by the second defendant (Nonso Nwoye’s) lawyer, Dr Chukwudebelu the second witness, Investigation Police Officer (IPO),  Inspector Peter Oranga (PW2, IPO) admitted that the first defendant, made two contradicting statements to the police in the attempted murder case.

He told the court that the first defendant (Izuegbunam) in the statement he made to him as the IPO on March 25, 2022, implicated the second defendant in the attempted murder after it was reported at the police station by the complainant Mrs, Miriam Eze who is incidentally the PW1.

The IPO, however, while responding to further questions under cross examination told the court that the first defendant in a statement he made to his sectional leader, Mr Osin Johnson on 22nd of June, 2022, as contained in a mini-sheet attached to the certified true copy (CTC) of the police investigation report, allegedly confessed that he was actually procured by the complainant, Mrs Miriam Eze (PW 1) to implicate Nwoye in the alleged murder attempt on her.

Izuegbunam had in his first statement told the police that he was paid N40,000 by Nonso Nwoye to murder Mrs Miriam Eze.

But in his second statement allegedly extracted later from him by the police investigation team leader, Osin Johnson, Izuegbunam was said to have confessed that Mrs Miriam Eze promised that she would pay him N5 million and sponsor him to travel to overseas if he admitted to the police that Nwoye paid him to murder her.

Meanwhile, the IPO admitted during the cross-examination that when his team raided the second defendant’s house in the course of the investigation they did not find any locally made gun alleged that the second defendant possessed.

He also told the court that when the complainant came to the police station wearing a neck-collar allegedly as a result of the attempt on her life, he issued her with a medical paper and instructed her to go to a government hospital for examination and get a medical report to the police.

The IPO also admitted that during the investigation he found out that the first defendant had a close relationship with the complainant, and, also that the second defendant was locked in a land dispute with the complainant, but, told the Court that he did not bother himself with investigating the case of land dispute because it was not part of the case reported at the police station.

Justice Onyinye had about a month ago granted bail to the second defendant about four years after his incarceration in the Awka Correctional Centre awaiting trial over the case.

The judge, however, did not grant a similar gesture to the first defendant because no application was made to the court to grant him bail.

Justice Onyinye adjourned further hearing of the case to July 24, 2026