A 27 year-old man, Oloche Omale was on Monday sentenced to death by hanging for criminal conspiracy and armed robbery
by a Makurdi High court in Benue State. Omale was found guilty of
conspiring with Analegh Donko, now deceased, to rob two women, Iveren
Mbatamen and Hembadoon Dzege of their possessions at gun point in 2007.
Delivering his judgment, Justice Aondover Kaka’an, held that even
though the convict claimed that it was the deceased that was an armed robber,
he still conveyed him to his destination. Kaka’an regarded the
convict’s claim of innocence as fake, adding that Omale was an
accomplice in the crime.
“Besides, I watched the demeanour of the accused while he testified
and he appeared to me capable of speaking from both sides of his
mouth,’’ Kaka’an said.The judge, however, said that based on the plea of the convict, the
court recommended to the committee on prerogative of mercy to give the
case a pathetic consideration.
In their testimony, the victims said they were waiting for a taxi
when the convict and his accomplice came on a motorcycle and
dispossessed them of N81,190, two phones and handbags. They said in
separate testimonies before the court that they raised alarm and the
robbers immediately took off while, Nguemo Atii, assisted them in his
car to apprehend them
The prosecution said the offence was punishable under sections 5(b) and 1(2) (a) of the Robbery and Firearms Act.
The convict, who had pleaded not guilty to the charges, did not call
any witness. He however testified that he was only a motorcyclist
conveying Donko but did not know that his passenger was a robber.
He explained to the prosecution, Mr Joshua Ityoyer when
cross-examined that he picked Donko for N150 and was only waiting to
give him the balance, and that was why he waited for him after he knew
he was a robber. Ityoyer said that the convict was just trying hard to retract his confessional statement to the police.
According to him, his extra-judicial statement is at variance with his evidence and urged the court not to accept the evidence.Mr N.D.A. Emmanuel, Counsel to the convict, said that prosecution had
failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. He said the
prosecution could not establish all the ingredients of the offence by
leading cogent and credible evidence linking the convict with the crime.
Omale, however pleaded for leniency while he maintained that he did
not commit the crime. The death of Donko who would have corroborated his
story did little to save him as he got a death sentence.
Source:InformationNigeria
