Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo has sentenced a dismissed soldier with the Nigerian Army, 6 Battalion, Ibagwa in Abak, Corporal Stephen Iweh, to death by hanging for the murder of a 42-year-old man, Christopher Enobong Jimmy.

The incident occurred on 23rd May, 2021, along the East-West Road in Ikot Abasi Local Government Area.

The late Jimmy, who was the Manager of a Clearing and Forwarding Company in Port Harcourt, had offered Corporal Iweh a lift in his car from Trailer Park in Onne, Rivers State, to Ikot Abasi in Akwa Ibom.

Along the way, at Oboro Junction in Ikot Abasi, the 39 year-old soldier shot him dead before fleeing with the vehicle and valuables.

READ ALSO:Man Dies Of Gunshot Inside Akwa Ibom Church, Police Begin Probe

Investigations revealed that Corporal Iweh, a father of three children, had illegally kept the AK-47 rifle which he said he “picked at Dambou, Borno State in 2018 and decided to keep it as personal arms”.

On the day of the killing, Corporal Iweh, was supposed to be on duty at the Army Store, 6 Battalion, Ibagwa, Abak, but abandoned his post to commit the crime.

He was later traced to Andy Guest House in Ukanafun, many kilometers from the scene of crime, where he was arrested and the rifle recovered.

In a judgment, the trial judge, Hon. Justice Bassey Nkanang held that the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt that Corporal Iweh, a native of Ameke Nkor in Ngor Okpala Local Government Area of Imo State, murdered Christopher Enobong Jimmy, an indigene of Ikot Abasi, robbed him of his Toyota Matrix car, while armed with an AK-47 rifle and unlawfully possessed the firearm without a license.

READ ALSO:Akwa Ibom: Police Raid Shrine, Arrest Suspected Rapists, Recover Two Coffins, Sanitary Pads, Pictures

The late Jimmy, Manager of a Clearing and Forwarding Company in Port Harcourt, was travelling home in his grey Toyota Matrix, when he gave the soldier, who was in full military uniform, a lift, at the Trailer Park in Onne enroute Akwa Ibom State.

The soldier later shot Jimmy at a junction in Oboro, Ikot Abasi, where they had stopped to urinate and eat Pork meat, before fleeing with the vehicle and other belongings.

Justice Nkanang convicted him on a three-count charge. He was sentenced to death by hanging for murder, death by hanging for armed robbery, and 10 years imprisonment for unlawful possession of firearms.

In his plea for mercy, the convict begged the court for what he described as a “soft landing,” but his allocutus was rejected.

The late Christopher Jimmy is survived by his 34-year-old widow, Arit, who tearfully recounted that her husband had left Port Harcourt to visit his sister and family in Ikot Abasi, but did not return home.

Four individuals have been confirmed dead while some others are still trapped after an illegal mining site collapsed in Dura community of Jos South local government area of Plateau State.

According to eyewitnesses, the tragic incident occured on Thursday night after youths in the area defied several warnings by the state government against engaging in illegal mining and sneaked into the site when local vigilantes who helped secure the mining site had closed for the day.

A resident of the community who narrated how the accident happened on conditions of anonymity, said so far, four bodies have been recovered from the collapsed mine while frantic search is currently ongoing to either rescue the trapped miners or more bodies.

READ ALSO:Netanyahu’s Plane Takes Unusual Route To UN Summit

“We had a tragic situation in Dura community. A mining site collapsed last night. I don’t know the casualty figure, but I can confirm to you that some people were inside the pit,” the resident said while responding to a question.

An aide to Governor Caleb Mutfwang on Artisanal Mining, Solomon Dung, who also spoke on the collapsed mine, said he got information on Friday after that the mine collapsed on Thursday when some community youths were engaging in illegal mining at the site.

“It happened yesterday (Thursday) at Dura community. From what I was told, some boys were working in a mining pit, and the ground just collapsed on four of them.

“Three d!ed instantly, and one other person was taken to the hospital, and unfortunately, he also d!ed. I am just going to the community as I speak to you,” Dung said.

No fewer than five worshippers were killed and several others abducted on Friday morning when armed bandits stormed a mosque in Yandoto village, Tsafe Local Government Area of Zamfara State, during early morning prayers.

Residents said the gunmen invaded the mosque while prayers were ongoing and opened fire indiscriminately, killing five people instantly and injuring many more.

According to a resident, the bandits came around dawn and started shooting at people praying.

READ ALSO:Bandits Leader Who Allegedly Killed 34 Katsina Worshippers Seen In Peace Meeting

The assailants were said to have also abducted an unspecified number of worshippers before retreating into the surrounding forests.

When contacted, the Zamfara State Police Command spokesperson, DSP Yazid Abubakar, said he had not yet been briefed on the incident by the Divisional Police Officer in charge of the area.

The attack is the latest in a series of assaults targeting places of worship in Tsafe LGA. Barely a week ago, gunmen stormed Gidan Turbe village, also in Tsafe, abducting about 40 worshippers during dawn prayers.

READ ALSO:Bandits Invade Kwara Community, Kill One, Kidnap Eight Others

Meanwhile, in a separate tragedy in the state, over 100 illegal miners are feared dead after a gold pit collapsed on Thursday in Kadauri village, Maru LGA. Witnesses said the pit caved in, trapping scores of miners.

Efforts to rescue those buried reportedly led to more casualties, as some of the rescuers suffocated in the process. At least eight bodies have so far been recovered and returned to their community in Mekwanugga village for burial.

Both incidents underscore the deepening security and safety challenges in Zamfara, where armed violence and economic desperation continue to take a heavy toll on rural communities.