Damian Okoligwe, a 400-level petrochemical engineering student at the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), was given a death by hanging sentence by a Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt following the brutal murder of his girlfriend, Justina Nkemenna Otuene, a 300-level biochemistry student at the same institution.
The incident happened in Okoligwe’s flat in Mgbuoba, Obio/Akpor LGA, Rivers state, on October 20, 2023.
The criminal killed Justina, a 300-level biochemistry student at the same university(UNIPORT), by strangulation after a fight. He then dissected her body, packed the remains into a bag, put it in a wheelbarrow, and was ready to dispose of it when neighbours caught him and called the police.
The presiding judge, Chinwe Nsirim-Nwosu, ruled on Friday that the prosecution, under the direction of the Rivers State Ministry of Justice, had proven beyond a reasonable doubt all three elements of murder: the deceased’s death, the defendant’s deliberate act that caused the death, and the defendant’s knowledge that the act would cause death.
The judge described Okoligwe’s actions as “intentional, composed, calculated, coordinated, and evil,” adding that there was no material contradiction in the prosecution’s evidence.
“The defendant is hereby sentenced to death by hanging on the neck until he be confirmed dead,” Nsirim-Nwosu ruled.
Responding to the verdict, Osatawaji Otuene, elder brother of the deceased, expressed relief and commended the judge for a “detailed and well-structured judgement”.
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