A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has discharged and acquitted 12 travellers accused of killing a female police officer, Inspector Christiana Erekere.
Erekere was attached to the Taabaa Police Division in Bori, Khana Local Government Area of the state.
Justice Augusta Chukwu, who delivered the judgment on Monday, ruled that the prosecution failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendants were responsible for the officer’s death, which occurred on April 25, 2024, during a stop-and-search operation.
The defendants: Efeoghene Uwheraka (the groom), Joy Uwhereka, Shirley Wealth, Napoleon Uwhereka, Ejiro Ejogbamu, Moses Agege, Precious Iyota, Kikelomo Odusanya, Wealth Ojoh, Ighofose Oke, Blessing Ovie, and Emeka Joshua were on their way to Akwa Ibom State for a wedding when the incident occurred.
According to reports, the confrontation began when officers at the checkpoint questioned the validity of one of the vehicles’ documents, which allegedly led to an altercation resulting in Erekere’s death.
In her judgment, Justice Chukwu stated that the evidence presented by the six prosecution witnesses was contradictory and largely based on hearsay, as none of them could prove that the actions of the defendants led to the death of the deceased.
She further noted that an autopsy report revealed that the officer did not die from physical injuries but from an underlying health condition.
(Channels TV)
