By Amaka Okafor
The Ebonyi State High Court has sentenced two men to death for kidnapping a two-year-old boy, Benjamin, who has remained missing since August 2020.
The convicts were found guilty of kidnapping contrary to Section 4(1)(a) and punishable under Section 4(2) of the Ebonyi State Internal Security Enforcement and Other Related Matters Law, Cap 55 Vol. 2, Laws of Ebonyi State, 2009.
According to court records, the incident occurred on August 23, 2020, at Ndufu Amuzu Ezza in Ezza South Local Government Area of Ebonyi State. The first defendant Kelechi Iloke , who was the son of the victim’s landlord, allegedly lured the child and his sister with the promise of buying biscuits for them.
After purchasing the biscuits, the little boy reportedly refused to return home with his sister. The girl later informed her elder sister that Benjamin had remained with the first defendant.
The sisters immediately went to the first defendant’s residence in search of the child but neither the defendant nor Benjamin could be found. Alarmed by the development, the family reported the matter, leading to investigations and subsequent arrests.
During interrogation, the first defendant confessed to kidnapping the child and handing him over to the second defendant Ikpere Kingsley .The confession led investigators to arrest the second defendant.
The second defendant also confessed, admitting that he sold the child to a man identified simply as “OG” for an agreed sum of N500,000 but received only N150,000 as part payment.
The defendants were subsequently arraigned in Charge No. HAB/FC50C/2021 before the Ebonyi State High Court presided over by Justice Chinyere Ken-Eze.
Delivering judgment, the court found both defendants guilty as charged and sentenced them to death. The court held that the prosecution had established its case beyond reasonable doubt through the confessional statements of the accused persons and corroborating eyewitness testimonies.
Speaking on the judgment, the prosecuting counsel Ijeoma Ajanwachukwu said, “The defendants were convicted based on their confessional statements and the evidence of eyewitnesses. The sisters narrated how the first defendant visited their home three times before taking the children to buy biscuits. After buying the biscuits, little Benjamin refused to follow his sister home and was left in the custody of the first defendant. Benjamin has not been found till date despite all efforts to locate him.”
