Okada rider hangs self for losing motorcycle to bandits

Tragedy struck yesterday in Awka, the Anambra State capital, when a 20 -year old commercial motor-bike operator popularly known as Okada, Mr. Onuigbo Nwode, hanged himself for losing his motorcycle to armed bandits.

Nwode, who hailed from Ezza, in Ebonyi State, relocated to Awka about three years ago and had been using income generated from the business to cater for his family members back home.

It was gathered that the motorcycle was stolen from him at gun point along Zik Avenue at about 1 am yesterday and apparently devastated by the incident, Nwode hung himself one a half hours later.

The body of the deceased have since been removed by the police from his Ichida Road residence at Umudioka, Awka, and deposited in a mortuary.

Another motorcycle operator, who claimed to be a relation of the deceased, said that after the motorcycle was snatched from Nwode, he returned to their house, weeping and looking dejected, adding that they never knew that he was contemplating suicide.

He said: “There were three of us from Ebonyi living in that room and when we saw how he was feeling, we started consoling him and at a time, all of us fell asleep. We never knew he planned to hang himself.

“When I eventually woke up to go and ease myself, I discovered that Nwode was no longer in the room. It was later that I saw something dangling and when I called the attention of our other brother, we flashed a touchlight on the object and discovered that it was the body of Nwode. We then raised an alarm and neighbours started trooping into our house.”

Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Emeka Chukwuemeka, confirmed the incident and said that investigations had commenced.

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Mechanic to Die by Hanging for Stealing Car Stereo

A motor mechanic has been sentenced to death by hanging for armed robbery. He was sentenced to death for robbing a University Lecturer of his car stereo at gun point in company of another accomplice, now deceased.

Prosecution led by the State Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr. Marcel Okoh called four witnesses to prove its case.

The mechanic along with another person were accused of robbing one Johnson Unuerho of his car stereo on the 29th of June, 2002 armed with a gun at Okpara Inland within Isiokolo judicial division.

However the 2nd accused persons one Gabriel Iyerowho, a driver was discharged and acquitted.

The victim of the robbery incident, who was PW2 (prosecution witness), a Principal Lecturer attached to the College of Education Warri, narrated how he tip-toed to the window, opened the blind gently and saw the 1st accused person, Patrick Ekeh and another member of the gang now deceased before shouting for help.

Justice Fred of Oleh High Court in Delta, in his judgment stated that “in the final analysis, I uphold defence of alibi of the 2nd accused persons. It ought to have been investigated by the police but was not.

And besides, he was not one of those sighted by the PW2 when he took a peep through the window of his house and so no evidence fixing him at the scene and sufficient to dislodge the alibi raised by him.

While sentencing the accused, he said, “this is an offence of armed robbery for which I have no discretion. The penalty is death and I am not in a position not to impose it. To this end, the accused person is sentenced to death by handing in the neck until he is dead”, the judge stated.

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Miko Umaru, to die by hanging 20 years after murder

A man, Miko Umaru, who beheaded one Hauwa Alasan almost 20 years ago has been sentenced to die by hanging by a Kano High Court.

Umaru and two other persons – Yau Jack and Ibrahim Sauro — now at large, were said to have hit Alasan on the head, strangled her and severed her head on February 23, 1992 near Kademi Village in Gaya Local Government Area.

While passing the judgement on Monday, Justice Nuradden Umar said, “I have no discretion, based on Section 221 of the Penal Code to commute a death sentence. I thereby sentence you, Miko to death by hanging. You shall be hanged until pronounced dead by the authorities concerned.”

However, Umar sentenced him to five years imprisonment on the second charge based on provisions under Section 219 of the Penal Code. The presiding judge added, “To my mind, the testimony of the first prosecution witness and the confessional statement of the convict were corroborated, something that attested to the fact that the accused did commit the act.

“According to the charges against the convict, Miko Umaru and two others — Yau Jack and Ibrahim Sauro — now at large, committed the act on February 23, 1992 on the outskirts of Kademi Village in Gaya LGA by hitting the deceased on the head several times, strangling her and severing her head.”

He told the convict that he had the right to appeal the judgment.

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