BAYELSA COURT SENTENCES FOUR TO DEATH FOR 2001 MURDER OF TAXI DRIVER
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
A Bayelsa State High Court sitting in Yenagoa has sentenced four men to death for the brutal 2001 murder of a taxi driver, Mr. Olarenwaju Ajayi, during a robbery operation disguised as a passenger trip.
In a judgment delivered on Thursday by Justice Patience Ziofa Diri of High Court 11, Onopa, Yenagoa, the four defendants Sunday Imoh Essien, Opena Akpabio, Odogha Ebi, and Clifford Michael were convicted on charges of conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder in Suit No. YHC/21C/202.
According to court proceedings, the convicts had posed as passengers and chartered the late Mr. Ajayi, a commercial taxi driver who operated between Yenagoa and Port Harcourt, under the false pretense of attending a naval programme in Onne, Rivers State.
On the journey from Agudama-Epie in Yenagoa, the group requested a stop at Okogbe in Rivers State, where the first defendant, Sunday Imoh, pretended he needed to relieve himself. As the car halted, the four men launched a coordinated attack on the unsuspecting driver, strangling him with a marine rope and stabbing him to death.
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The court noted that the assailants subsequently disposed of the victim’s body and drove the stolen vehicle to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, where it was sold for N450,000.
Delivering the sentence, Justice Diri held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and sentenced all four men to death by hanging.
Reacting to the verdict, the Bayelsa State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Biriyai Dambo, SAN, commended the court’s ruling, describing it as a testament to the state government’s zero-tolerance policy on violent crime.
“This conviction underscores our unwavering commitment to justice and the rule of law,” Dambo said. “Bayelsa State will continue to ensure that those who violate the law are brought to book and that justice is served for victims and their families.”
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