Akwa Ibom Court Sentences Dismissed Soldier to Death for Murder of Businessman

The Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo has sentenced a dismissed soldier of the Nigerian Army, Corporal Stephen Iweh, to death by hanging for the murder of 42-year-old businessman, Christopher Enobong Jimmy.

The incident occurred after the victim, who was the Manager of a Clearing and Forwarding Company in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, offered Iweh a lift from Trailer Park in Onne to Ikot Abasi, Akwa Ibom. Along the way, at Oboro Junction in Ikot Abasi, the 39-year-old soldier shot Jimmy dead before fleeing with his Toyota Matrix car and other valuables.

Investigations revealed that Iweh, a father of three, had been illegally in possession of an AK-47 rifle which he claimed to have “picked up at Dambou, Borno State, in 2018 and decided to keep as personal arms.” On the day of the killing, he was supposed to be on duty at the Army Store of the 6 Battalion, Ibagwa, Abak, but abandoned his post to commit the crime.

Court records showed that Iweh, who joined the Army in 2002, was later traced to Andy Guest House in Ukanafun, where he was arrested. An AK-47 rifle was recovered from him at the time of his arrest.

Delivering judgment, the presiding judge, Hon. Justice Bassey Nkanang, ruled that the prosecution had proven beyond reasonable doubt that Iweh, a native of Ameke Nkor in Ngor Okpala Local Government Area of Imo State, murdered Christopher Jimmy, robbed him of his car while armed, and unlawfully possessed a firearm without license.

Iweh was convicted on a three-count charge and sentenced to death by hanging for murder, death by hanging for armed robbery, and 10 years’ imprisonment for unlawful possession of firearms.

In his plea for leniency, the convict begged the court for a “soft landing,” but his plea was rejected.

The late Christopher Jimmy is survived by his 34-year-old widow, Arit, who tearfully recounted that her husband had left Port Harcourt to visit his sister in Ikot Abasi but never returned home.