16 hours ago
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A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has convicted and sentenced Charles Baridolee to death by hanging for the murder of Gerald Tekena in 2024.
Baridolee was found guilty of killing Tekena in Bodo community, Gokana Local Government Area, after inflicting multiple machete cuts on him during a quarrel.
The court heard that the convict attacked the victim after warning him to stop giving money to his family.
Baridolee had claimed that his family members had stopped respecting him because Tekena had been supporting them financially.
Delivering judgment on Thursday, the trial judge, Justice Augusta Chukwu, held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt through the evidence presented and the confessional statement of the defendant.
Justice Chukwu consequently sentenced Baridolee to death by hanging, declaring that he should be “hanged by the neck until he is confirmed dead.”
Speaking to journalists after the judgment, the Chief Prosecution Counsel from the Rivers State Ministry of Justice, Ordu Precious, said “the ruling had restored hope to the family of the deceased” and reaffirmed the judiciary’s role as the hope of the common man.
On his part, the Defence Counsel, Angus Chukwuka, described the judgment as well-considered but disclosed plans to appeal the decision, noting that the case involves the life of a human being.
