Nigerian Man Sentenced to Death For Killing Toddler in Enugu
The Enugu State High Court, under the jurisdiction of Justice C. C. Ani, has convicted and sentenced Okolie Chigozie Michael, aged 32, to death by hanging for allegedly strangling his son, Igwilo Chimereucheya, to death.
In court proceedings, Okolie Chigozie Michael, a native of Ibeme Obingwa in Abia State, faced charges for allegedly strangling his son, Igwilo Chimereucheya, to death in the bush on April 14, 2020, at Emene in Enugu.
After it was proven beyond doubt by the prosecution, the court found the accused guilty of killing his son during Wednesday’s session.
During the trial, the court concurred with the Prosecuting Counsel, Nkechi Ogbodo of the Department of Public Prosecution, Ministry of Justice, Enugu, who presented evidence, including an autopsy report, demonstrating that the deceased was indeed strangled to death.
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Following the failure of his initial attempt to kill his child, the convict struck the child on the chest, leading to the child excreting hot faeces and urine, and then attempted to escape, prompting the child’s mother from Enugu to raise the alarm and attract neighbours upon discovering the child’s death.
Sources gathered that the convict had a history of serial abuse, frequently assaulting the mother of his son, and had previously been compelled to sign an undertaking at the police station under pressure from their landlord and his wife’s employer. This action was prompted by continuous threats he made to kill both the mother and her child.
Consequently, he was cautioned at different police stations to stop his violent behaviour before the tragic incident resulting in the death of his son, Chimereucheya, occurred, with reports indicating that he caused harm to the deceased’s penis multiple times as punishment for bed-wetting.
In her ruling, Justice Ani emphasized that the culprit’s confession revealed a voluntary and premeditated act in the murder of the deceased, dismissing any claims of duress, which led to the court convicting him of murder and imposing the death penalty.
