High court sitting in Ukwa, Abia State has sentenced two members of defunct Bakassi Group now the Abia State Vigilante Services to death by hanging for Murder of two persons in the state.
The trial judge, Hon. Justice C.H. Ahuchaogu found the suspects; Mr Ugochukwu Amaugo and Mr Udo Ogba Oka guilty of murder in the incident which occurred on the 30th of August, 2013.
The judge in a judgement delivered on Thursday, 7th March, 2024, found the duo culpable in the murder of Temple Nwakanma and Martins Azih around Osisioma, Aba, Abia State.
History of the matter
It would be recalled that the convicts who were members of the defunct Bakassi group now Abia State Vigilante Services had stated that on the 30th of August, 2013 they arrested two young men named, Temple Nwakanma and Martins Azih around Osisioma, Aba and claimed to have found them in possession of firearms, cartridges and knives.
They had moved them from there and headed to their Umuahia office when they met some men of the Nigerian Army at Abia tower who, after interrogation requested that the boys be handed over to them which they did.
They claimed not knowing the names of the military men neither did they get a note from them as at the time of that handover.
Ever since, the whereabouts of the young men have been unknown as the members of the Nigerian Army situated in the area of the incidence had denied receiving any of such men as claimed by members of the Abia State Vigilante Services.
Meanwhile, efforts made to ascertain the whereabouts of those young men have since proved abortive in the last 11years.
The matter has however been in court since after the incident and came to a conclusion yesterday Thursday , as Hon. Justice Chibuzo Ahuchaogu sentenced both men of the defunct Bakassi group, now Abia State Vigilante Services to death by hanging for failing to prove beyond every reasonable doubt that they had handed the boys to men of the Nigeria Army and as such knew nothing about their disappearance.
