A 26-year-old man, David Isaiah, has been sentenced to death by hanging by an Ekiti State High Court for the murder of a commercial sex worker, Comfort James.
Isaiah was found guilty on a three-count charge of conspiracy, kidnapping, and murder. The case was presided over by Justice Olalekan Olatawura.
Delivering judgment on Monday, the judge sentenced Isaiah to death for murder, life imprisonment for kidnapping, and 21 years for conspiracy.
The charge stated that Isaiah and his accomplice, Saviour Daniel—who died while the case was ongoing—conspired to kidnap and murder James on February 6, 2024, in Ado Ekiti.
The prosecution, led by Ibironke Odetola, told the court that the offences contravened Sections 280, 279(a), and 234 of the Ekiti State Criminal Law, 2021.
Testifying during the trial, the Director of Afrika Brothel in Irona, Ado Ekiti, said James went missing after informing her colleagues via phone that she had been kidnapped and that her abductors were demanding an N100,000 ransom.
“I reported the matter to the police and Civil Defence. Their lines were tracked and they were later arrested. They took officers to the location where they dumped her body,” he said.
Odetola called six witnesses and tendered several exhibits, including the defendant’s confessional statements, the deceased’s pictures, a pair of slippers, SIM cards, and a bottle of herbicide.
In his statement, Isaiah admitted to the crime, telling the court he and others tied the victim’s hands and neck. When ransom efforts failed and fearing she had seen their faces, they poured herbicide into her mouth, leading to her death. He called no witnesses in his defence.
In his ruling, Justice Olatawura said the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
“Consequent upon the foregoing, the defendant is found guilty as charged. Any sympathetic consideration in favour of the defendant cannot therefore be justified,” he declared.
“The judgment of this court upon you is that you be hanged until you are dead. May God have mercy on your soul,” the judge pronounced.
