High Court Sentences UniPort Student To Death For Murder Of His Girlfriend












High Court Sentences UniPort Student To Death For Murder Of His Girlfriend

By Editor 




A 400-level Petrochemical Engineering student of the University of Port Harcourt, Damian Okoligwe, has been sentenced to death by hanging for the murder of his girlfriend, Justina Otuene, a 300-level Biochemistry student at the same institution.


Justice Chiwen Nsirim Nwosu of a Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt handed down the judgement on Friday.


Okoligwe, now 26, was found guilty of killing Justina in October 2023 at his residence.

Delivering judgment, Justice Chiwen Nsirim Nwosu held that the prosecution, led by Charles Obediah-Mbaba, proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and established that Okoligwe committed the crime.

The court further ruled that Justina’s death resulted directly from his actions.

Speaking after the judgment, prosecuting counsel Obediah Charles Mbaba praised the court for ensuring justice, saying, Justice has not only been done but also seen and felt to be done in respect to the gruesome murder of Justina Otuene.

He added that it’s a relief, and it’s certain that his sister didn’t just die for nothing.

Okoligwe was arrested in 2023 after neighbours raised the alarm over his attempt to dispose of Justina’s body, whom he allegedly killed for money ritual purposes.

The murder trial commenced in May 2024, two months after the Rivers State Government took over the case. It had initially been before a Magistrate Court in Port Harcourt, but in November 2023, Chief Magistrate Nnenda Obiageri Onugbum ordered that the case file be transferred to the Department of Public Prosecution, DPP, for legal advice.


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