Two Sentenced to Death by Hanging for Kidnap, Ritual Murder of DELSU Student

A Delta State High Court sitting in Ogwashi-Uku has sentenced two men, Macaulay Desmond Oghenemaro and Enaike Onoriode, to death by hanging for the 2019 kidnapping and ritual murder of Elozino Joshualia Ogege, a 300-level Mass Communication student of Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka.

Justice Flora Ngozi Azinge delivered the judgment on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, after finding the defendants guilty of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, kidnapping, conspiracy to commit murder, and murder.

The prosecution told the court that Ogege, a first-class student, was lured under the guise of meeting an agent who would help her secure off-campus accommodation. She was subsequently abducted and murdered in what prosecutors described as a ritual killing linked to suspected internet fraud activities.

During the trial, the convicted men reportedly gave confessional statements detailing how the victim was mutilated before her death. Prosecutors alleged that parts of her body, including her eyes, breasts and heart, were removed for ritual purposes.

A third defendant, Nwosisi Benedict Uche, was discharged and acquitted by the court, while a fourth defendant, native doctor Robinson Obajero Ojokojo, died during the course of the trial.

The case, which began in 2019, experienced several delays and adjournments, largely due to the repeated absence of counsel representing the first defendant. Proceedings eventually resumed, culminating in the adoption of final written addresses earlier this year.

In her judgment, Justice Azinge held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and sentenced Oghenemaro and Onoriode to death by hanging for the murder of Ogege.

Reacting to the verdict, the Delta State Solicitor-General and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice, Omamuzo Erebe (SAN), who led the prosecution team, described the judgment as a landmark victory for justice.