The Edo State Special Criminal Court has sentenced four persons to death for their involvement in the kidnapping of a woman at the Vegetable Market area off Airport Road, Benin City.
Justice Aigbona Momodu delivered the judgment on Tuesday after the accused persons were found guilty of charges bordering on kidnapping, conspiracy, armed robbery, cultism and unlawful possession of firearms.
The case involved 11-count charges filed against the defendants.
The convicts, Marvelous Isaac, 32; Wisdom Michael, 36; Rufus Michael, 30; and Gift Raphael, 27, comprised three men and one woman.
The Special Criminal Court was established by the Edo State Government to handle cases involving kidnapping and cult-related offences.
According to the judgment, the court imposed death sentences on the convicts on several counts relating to kidnapping and other offences, alongside additional prison terms for other charges.
The court also ordered the confiscation of firearms and ammunition recovered during the investigation, including a pump-action rifle, two unexpended cartridges and two expended cartridges.
The recovered items were ordered to be transferred to the Edo State Criminal Investigation Department of the Nigeria Police Force for destruction.
The incident that led to the prosecution occurred at the Vegetable Market along Airport Road, Benin City, where the victim was reportedly abducted while at the market with her husband and children.
A witness who recorded a video of the incident had narrated that she saw the kidnapping take place and described the incident as her first personal encounter with such an attack.
The witness said the incident happened while both women were shopping at the market and stated that she helped protect the victim’s children during the attack.
The Edo State Police Command later confirmed the incident.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Momodu sentenced the first defendant, Marvelous Isaac, to seven years’ imprisonment on one count, while imposing death sentences on several other counts.
Similar sentences were handed to the other defendants, with the court ordering that they be executed by hanging or through lethal injection in accordance with the law.
The court’s ruling concluded with an order that the recovered weapons and ammunition be handed over to the Edo State Police Armourer through the Criminal Division of the court for destruction within 30 days.
The judgment marks one of the major decisions of the Edo State Special Criminal Court since its establishment to accelerate prosecution of kidnapping and cult-related offences in the state.
