Appeal Court Affirms Bus Driver’s Death Sentence

An appeal court sitting in Port Harcourt has confirmed an earlier ruling by a state High Court, sentencing a bus driver, Mr. Emeka Mbachu to death for allegedly killing a special marshal, Mr. Clifford Azubuike while on patrol duty.

In his lead judgement, Hon. Justice E. Eko (JCA) dismissed the appeal filed by the convict, Mr. Emeka Mbachu challenging his earlier conviction and sentence by the high court, thereafter, upheld the ruling of the Port Harcourt High Court.

According to Hon. Justice Eko, “On the whole, there is no substance in the appeal, my candid view, the appeal deserves to be, and it is hereby dismissed in its entirety”.

He said, “the conviction and sentence of the Appellant in the charge No. PHC/3C/96 for murder punishable with death on July 15, 1999, are hereby affirmed”.

The other two justices of the panel, Hon. Justice C.E. Nwogu-Iheme (JCA) and Hon. Justice Stephen Jonah Adah (JCA) in the same vein concurred in its entirety with the reasoning and the conclusion of the lead judgement.

“The wages of sin is death. And he who kills must die as enshrined and provided for in section 319 (1) Criminal Code Cap, LFN 1990, that any person who commits the offence of murder shall be sentenced to death”, the lead judge further said.

It would be recalled that on November 3, 1993, at about 6.45pm, at the First Artillery Junction, along Aba/Port Harcourt Highway, Port Harcourt, the decesed was on a routine traffic control duty by checking vehicles and controlling the busy traffic along with other special marshals, before the convict, driving a blue bus from Oyigbo (Aba) crushed him to death.

A criminal proceeding, suit No. PHC/3C/96, preffering charge of murder against the bus driver was instituted at the Rivers State High Court.

At the end of the prosecution, the trial court on the 15

th of July 1999, after evaluating the evidence of the prosecution, convicted and sentenced the bus driver, Mr. Emeka Mbachu to death.

Thereafter, the bus driver instituted an appeal, No. CA/PH/243/2004 at the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt against the final Judgement of the trial court which convicted and sentenced him to death.

The counsel for the appellant, Ayodeji Adedipe, appealed to the court on one issue, to wit: having regard to the intrinsic and divergent evidence produced by the prosecution on the immediate facts of the case, was the charge of murder proved against the appellant beyond reasonable doubt as required by law?

On this premise, the Appeal court convicted and sentenced Mr. Mbachu to death.

Reacting to the judgement, the Rivers State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Dr. Kayode Olagunju hailed the decision of the appellate court and believed that no matter the period of time, Justice has finally come, and warned all road users to conduct themselves.