Kogi: Court Imposes Death Sentence On Man Arrested For Kidnap, Killing Of Neighbour

Barely 24 hours after a Katsina State High Court sentenced a female arms courier arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) to death, a High Court of Kogi State has also imposed the death penalty on a man prosecuted for kidnapping and murdering his neighbour, who ran a hotel in Obajana.

The Kogi Court, presided by Justice Abdul Nicodemus Awulu, on Tuesday found Jibrin Halilu guilty on the charges of conspiracy and kidnapping, in contravention of Sections 12, 6 (1), and 4 (3)(a) of the Kogi State Kidnapping and Other Related Offences Prohibition Law, 2023.

The court subsequently sentenced Halilu to death.

According to the prosecution, on March 23, 2023, Halilu and other members of his armed gang stormed Everready hotel, Angwa-Tiv, in Obajana town,
abducting the proprietor, Uche Andrew Offo.

Even though Offo’s family handed his abductors the N2.5 million ransom they demanded, they, nonetheless, killed him.

The prosecutor told the court that operatives of the DSS arrested Halilu on December 4, 2025.

The Kogi and Katsina convictions and sentencings come on the heels of a June 3, 2026, verdict by a Federal High Court in Abuja sentencing four men to death for their roles in the June 5, 2022 terrorist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.

The court sentenced the quartet of Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, and Abdulhaleem Idris to death by hanging for the attack which resulted in the death of over 40 worshippers and left over 100 persons injured. (Daily trust)