A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has convicted and sentenced a 400-level student of the University of Port Harcourt, Damian Okoligwe, to death by hanging for the murder of his girlfriend, Justina Otuene.
Okoligwe, a Petrochemical Engineering student, killed Otuene — a 300-level Biochemistry undergraduate — on October 20, 2023, at his apartment in Mgbuoba, Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of the state. He later dismembered her body and dumped the remains in a wheelbarrow before he was apprehended.
Delivering judgment on Friday, Justice Chinwe Nsirim-Nwosu held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt the essential elements of murder, noting that Okoligwe’s actions were “intentional, composed, calculated, coordinated, and evil.” The judge ruled that there were no contradictions in the evidence presented and ordered that the convict be hanged until he dies.
Outside the courtroom, the prosecution counsel, Charles Mbaba, expressed satisfaction with the verdict, saying justice had finally been served. He described the ruling as a relief for the victim’s family and a deterrent to young people seeking shortcuts to wealth.
“Justina was the only daughter of her parents but was gruesomely murdered in circumstances suggestive of ritual intentions. With this judgment, we hope her soul can now have peaceful repose,” Mbaba said.
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The deceased’s elder brother, Osatawaji Otuene, also welcomed the judgment, describing it as detailed and thorough. He said the ruling brought some measure of comfort to the family.
“It is a relief because at least it is certain that my sister didn’t die for nothing,” he said.
The defence counsel declined to comment on the judgment.