By Adesakin Adefemi
A High Court in Anambra State has sentenced commercial tricycle rider Makua Ezike to death by hanging after convicting him of murder. Justice Lauretta Oyeka delivered the judgment at the Anambra State High Court.
According to the charge sheet, the offence occurred on November 17, 2019, along the Oba-Obosi-Nkpor-Umuoji Road. Ezike was said to have been using his tricycle with other gang members for a “one-chance” robbery operation.
The court heard that the defendant and two accomplices, who remain at large, posed as a commercial rider and passengers. They picked up Jude Onwuegbuchunam, an indigene of Umuoji in Idemili North Local Government Area, and attempted to rob him of his phone and valuables.
When Onwuegbuchunam resisted and raised the alarm, Ezike and his gang pushed him out of the high-speed moving tricycle near Abidi Hall, Umuoji. Umuoji Vigilante operatives were stationed in the area and gave chase to the suspects.
Ezike abandoned the tricycle and fled with the other gang members. He returned the next day to the scene and was arrested by vigilante operatives, who handed him over to the police. He later confessed to the crime.
Onwuegbuchunam sustained fatal injuries from the fall and died two days later. The prosecution called five witnesses, including the medical doctor who conducted the post-mortem examination.
The doctor confirmed that Onwuegbuchunam’s death resulted directly from injuries sustained in the fall. The defence argued that there was no eyewitness to the incident.
Justice Oyeka held that the law recognises three pathways to conviction: direct eyewitness evidence, confessional statements, and circumstantial evidence. The judge said the circumstantial evidence in this case was overwhelming.
The court cited the abandoned tricycle, Ezike’s disappearance from the scene, his voluntary confession, and the medical evidence linking the victim’s injuries to his actions. The court convicted Ezike of murder and ordered that he be put to death by hanging.
