High court sentences two men to death for stealing couple’s car at gunpoint in Delta

In Nigeria two men have been convicted and sentenced to death by hanging for armed robbery in Delta state.

Theophilus Nwachukwu and Christopher Okoli, were said to have robbed a couple, Mr and Mrs Gabriel Adoghe, of their Honda vehicle.

A Delta State High Court 2 sitting on June 6, found them guilty of kidnapping, armed robbery and illegal possession of arms.

The couple, had approached the court alleging that the defendants robbed them of their car at gunpoint at Effurun in the Uvwie Local Government Area.

In his ruling, Justice R. Harriman said the prosecution proved all the charges preferred against the defendants beyond a reasonable doubt.

The complainants revealed that the defendants ran out of luck when they met a police checkpoint at Aladja, where the police arrested them with Gabriel still locked up in the car’s trunk.

During the trial, the prosecution called the two victims and three policemen as witnesses.

The prosecution counsel, Theophilus Omenuwoma, an Assistant Director in the state Ministry of Justice, said he was satisfied with the judgement.

“The defendants were charged to court on five-count charges bordering on a conspiracy that earned them seven years imprisonment, kidnapping that got them 10 years imprisonment, armed robbery that earned them death by hanging and illegal possession which earned them 10 years imprisonment, respectively,” he said.