By Oscar Okhifo
The Edo State Special Criminal Court has sentenced four persons to death for the kidnapping of a woman at the Vegetable Market along Airport Road, Benin City.
The judgment, delivered on Tuesday, is the court’s maiden verdict in a kidnapping case since its establishment to fast-track the prosecution of kidnapping, cultism and other violent crimes in the state.
The convicts — Marvellous Isaac, Wisdom Michael, Rufus Emete Michael and Gift Raphael — were prosecuted on an 11-count charge bordering on kidnapping, conspiracy, armed robbery, cultism and unlawful possession of firearms.
The case followed the broad-daylight abduction of the woman on June 14, 2026.
Delivering judgment, Justice Aigbona Momodu said the applicable law prescribed the punishments for the offences and left him with no discretion to impose lesser sentences.
“My hands are tied under the law. I wish I have the law permit me to exercise my discretion. I would have, but my hands are tied. I will just impose the sentence as prescribed by the law,” the judge said.
For the third defendant, Rufus Emete Michael, the court imposed seven years’ imprisonment on count one and the death penalty on counts two, three, four, six and seven.
The court ruled: “Third defendant, in count one, you, Rufus Emete Michael, are hereby sentenced to seven years imprisonment.
“In count two, three, four, six, and seven, you, Rufus Emete Michael, are hereby sentenced to death by hanging or through the administration of a lethal injection.”
The court subsequently pronounced: “You shall be hanged by the neck until you are dead. May the Lord have mercy on you.”
Isaac was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment on count one, death on counts two to nine, 10 years’ imprisonment on count 10 and life imprisonment on count 11.
Michael received seven years’ imprisonment on count one and death sentences on counts two to nine, while Raphael was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment on count one and death on counts two, four, six and eight.
The court also ordered the confiscation of a JoJef pump-action firearm and four cartridges tendered as exhibits during the trial.
It directed that the exhibits be handed over to the Edo State Police Armourer at the State Criminal Investigation Department for destruction within 30 days.
The Edo State Special Criminal Court was established on July 1, 2026, to handle kidnapping and cultism-related cases and expedite the prosecution of violent crimes in the state.
The judgment marks the court’s first kidnapping verdict and gives judicial weight to Governor Monday Okpebholo’s earlier warnings against violent crime.
At the inauguration of the special court, Okpebholo warned those involved in criminal activities to desist, stressing that anyone convicted would face the full weight of the law.
The governor had also said he would not hesitate to sign any death warrant presented to him after the exhaustion of all judicial processes.
He said where a competent court imposes the death penalty and all legal processes are exhausted, he would perform his constitutional responsibility.
Tuesday’s judgment has brought that position into sharper focus, with the court imposing death sentences on the four convicts on various counts.
The sentences, however, remain subject to applicable judicial processes, including any right of appeal and other legal procedures before execution can take place.
For the state government, the verdict represents the first major judicial outcome from the specialised court established to ensure that kidnapping and related cases are prosecuted and determined without prolonged delays.
The development also sends a message to residents, particularly young people who may be tempted by the perceived financial gains associated with criminal activities.
Kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism and other violent crimes carry serious legal consequences, including imprisonment and, where prescribed by law and upheld after conviction, the death penalty.
The verdict therefore underscores the consequences of violent crime and the state’s stated determination to pursue such cases through the courts.