A High Court sitting in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, has sentenced two men to death by hanging after finding them guilty of kidnapping Mrs Grace Omietimi, the mother of the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa, Dr James Omietimi.
The convicts, Felix Oburu and Anthony Kio Eligwe, were convicted for abducting the victim and keeping her in captivity for several weeks before she was eventually released after a ransom was paid by her family.
Court records showed that the offence was carried out in collaboration with other suspects who are currently at large. Oburu is from Omoku in Ogba/Egbema Local Government Area, while Eligwe hails from Oyigba in Ahoada West Local Government Area, both in Rivers State.
Mrs Omietimi was abducted on September 17, 2017, and taken to Oyigba community, where she was held hostage until her release.
The suspects were later arrested by operatives of the Department of State Services following intelligence-led investigations that tracked their movements and activities.
Delivering judgment, the Chief Judge of Bayelsa State, Justice Matilda A. Ayemieye, held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and found both defendants guilty as charged. She subsequently imposed the death sentence on them.
During the trial, the prosecution called the victim, Mrs Omietimi, who recounted her ordeal in captivity and identified Eligwe as the individual in whose residence she was held. The Investigating Officer from the DSS also testified, detailing how the suspects were tracked and arrested.
The ruling brings a long-running case to a close and underscores the court’s firm stance against kidnapping and related violent crimes.
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