By philip Jeremiah Eke
A Bayelsa State High Court sitting in Yenagoa has sentenced two men to death by hanging for the abduction of Mrs Grace Omietimi, mother of the Chief Medical Director of the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa, Dr James Omietimi.
The convicts, identified as Felix Oburu and Anthony Kio Eligwe, were found guilty of kidnapping the victim and holding her captive for weeks before her release.
The court heard that the two men conspired with other accomplices, who are still at large, to carry out the crime.
Oburu is a native of Omoku Community in Ogba/Egbema Local Government Area, while Eligwe hails from Oyigba Community in Ahoada West Local Government Area, both in Rivers State.
According to the proceedings, Omietimi was abducted on September 17, 2017, and taken to Oyigba Community, where she was held in captivity for several weeks.
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She was eventually released after a ransom was paid by her family.p
The suspects were later apprehended by operatives of the Department of State Services following intelligence-led operations that traced their movements and activities.
Delivering judgment on Thursday, the Chief Judge of Bayelsa State, Justice Matilda A. Ayemieye, upheld the prosecution’s case and found the defendants guilty as charged.
The court subsequently sentenced both men to death by hanging.
During the trial, the prosecution called Grace Omietimi, who gave a detailed account of her experience in captivity.
She identified the second defendant, Anthony Kio Eligwe, as the person in whose residence she was held throughout the period.
Her testimony was supported by the Investigating Officer from the DSS Bayelsa State Command, who explained how the suspects were tracked and arrested.
The judgment brings closure to a case that has lingered for years, while reinforcing the judiciary’s stance against kidnapping and related crimes.
