A 40-year-old farmer, Alex Obigho, has been sentenced to death by hanging by a Delta State High Court sitting in Ughelli, for the murder of the steward and cook of the traditional ruler of Kiagbodo community.
The court presided over by Justice A. O. Akpovi, while delivering the judgment on Thursday, found the accused guilty of the one count of murder preferred against him by the police.
Obigho had brutally murdered the victim, Okunu Diafa, a native of Kiagbodo community on June 22, 2012 at the boundary between Oviri-Olomu of Ughelli South Local Government Area and Kiagbodo, Burutu LGA.
He had claimed that Diafa was a thief responsible for stealing his farm produce. It was said that on the fateful day, Obigho allegedly caught the deceased on his farm and on sighting him, the man took to his heels.
The convict pursued Diafa with a machete and a fight ensued, during which he hacked him to death.
The judge in his judgment commended the traditional rulers of both communities for handling the matter with maturity without letting it snowball into a crisis.
He said, “The accused did not report the matter to the police for investigation; rather, he killed the man, absconded and sold his phone. This shows that the accused is hardened. He had the option to get the deceased arrested by the police instead of taking the law into his own hands.”
