A Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt has sentenced three men to death by hanging for their roles in the killing of a pharmacist, Muenalo Sunday, in Khana Local Government Area of the state.
Those convicted are Confidence Kirinee, also known as General Ilia, Precious Mona, and Soniabari Sagha. They were found guilty of offences including conspiracy, cultism, kidnapping and murder.
Justice Augusta Chukwu, who delivered the judgment on Friday, ruled that the prosecution established the case against the defendants beyond reasonable doubt.
Another accused person, Loveday Legah, was sentenced to life imprisonment for his membership of a secret cult linked to the crime.
The court heard that the convicts were members of the Iceland cult group and had plotted the abduction and killing of the pharmacist on March 5, 2019, at Zaakpo community in Khana LGA.
Justice Chukwu noted that evidence presented during the trial, including confessional statements from the suspects, indicated that the victim was killed and parts of his body mutilated before the remains were disposed of in a pit.
The court further heard that the severed head of the victim was allegedly taken to a shrine situated in a bush in a neighbouring community.
Following the findings, the judge sentenced Kirinee, Mona and Sagha to death by hanging, while Legah was handed life imprisonment for his involvement in cult activities connected to the killing.
Speaking after the ruling, the Chief State Counsel in the Rivers State Ministry of Justice, Preye Ordu, praised the court for what he described as a comprehensive judgment.
He stated that the verdict would offer a measure of comfort to the family of the deceased who had long awaited justice.
Ordu said the ruling demonstrated that justice had finally been achieved for the victim.
Also reacting, the widow of the deceased, Pretty Neewa-Sunday, said she felt relieved that those responsible for her husband’s death had been punished.
“They have received the reward for what they did because my husband did nothing to deserve such treatment,” she said.
She explained that her late husband had been her main source of care and support, noting that she lives with sickle cell disease.
According to her, the loss has been particularly painful because her husband had always been responsible for her wellbeing before his death.
