A High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, has sentenced a dismissed soldier of the Nigerian Army, Corporal Stephen Iweh, to death by hanging for the murder of a 42-year-old clearing and forwarding manager; Mr. Christopher Enobong Jimmy, during a robbery in 2021.
Justice Bassey Nkanang, in his ruling, held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Iweh, formerly of the 6 Battalion, Ibagwa in Abak, murdered Jimmy, robbed him of his Toyota Matrix car, and unlawfully possessed an AK-47 rifle without a license.
The court found him guilty on a three-count charge and sentenced him to death by hanging for murder, death by hanging for armed robbery, and 10 years imprisonment for unlawful possession of firearms.
The tragic incident occurred on May 23, 2021, along the East-West Road in Ikot Abasi Local Government Area. Jimmy, who was returning home to Ikot Abasi from Port Harcourt, had offered the 39-year-old soldier a lift from the Trailer Park in Onne, Rivers State.
Investigations revealed that at Oboro Junction, Ikot Abasi, Iweh shot Jimmy dead, after they had stopped to eat and rest, before fleeing with his vehicle and valuables. The convict was later traced to Andy Guest House in Ukanafun, where he was arrested and the AK-47 rifle recovered.
Iweh, a father of three who joined the Nigerian Army in 2002, admitted to illegally keeping the rifle, which he claimed he picked up at Dambou, Borno State, in 2018 during counterinsurgency operations. He had abandoned his duty post at the Army Store on the day of the killing to carry out the crime.
During the trial, the widow of the deceased, Mrs. Arit Jimmy, gave an emotional account of how her husband left Port Harcourt to visit his sister in Ikot Abasi but never returned home.
In his plea for leniency, Iweh begged the court for a “soft landing,” but his request was rejected.
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