Supreme Court Upholds Death Sentence for Delta Kidnapper as 12-Year Legal Battle Ends.

The Supreme Court of Nigeria has affirmed the death sentence handed to a notorious Delta State kidnapper, Chelynor Halim, bringing an end to a prolonged legal battle that lasted nearly 12 years after a brutal abduction incident that shocked residents of the state.

In a unanimous judgment delivered on Friday, a five-member panel of the apex court dismissed Halim’s appeal, ruling that the prosecution had overwhelmingly proved his involvement in the kidnapping and armed robbery of a woman identified as Joan Osemene.

The decision effectively upholds the earlier judgments of both the Asaba High Court and the Court of Appeal, which had convicted Halim and sentenced him to death by hanging.

Halim was initially arraigned before a High Court sitting in Asaba, Delta State, in 2017 over the violent abduction of Osemene, which occurred on February 9, 2014, in the Ibusa area of the state.

Court records revealed that the convict, alongside members of his gang, intercepted the victim and forcefully dragged her to an undisclosed location where she was subjected to physical assault, intimidation and robbery.

During the terrifying attack, Halim reportedly slapped the victim repeatedly, pointed a gun at her and threatened to kill her if she resisted. The gang later covered her nose with a chemically treated cloth, causing her to lose consciousness.

The prosecution identified the gang leader as Edozie Obude, who allegedly tightened his grip around the victim’s throat and struck her on the neck with a metallic object while ordering other gang members to search her belongings.

While testifying before the court, Osemene narrated how the kidnappers dispossessed her of her Automated Teller Machine card and N10,000 cash before withdrawing an additional N55,000 from her bank account using the stolen card.

She further told the court that her hands and legs were tied before she was moved to another hideout where the gang eventually abandoned her.

In what many described as a dramatic twist, the victim managed to untie herself and escaped from captivity. She reportedly ran for safety until she reached a major road where she attempted to seek help from a passing motorcyclist.

However, to her shock, the motorcyclist turned out to be one of the kidnappers involved in her abduction.

Realising the danger, Osemene immediately raised an alarm, attracting passersby and residents who swiftly apprehended the suspect before he could flee the scene.

The suspect was subsequently handed over to operatives of the Department of State Services for interrogation.

Security investigations later uncovered the gang’s hideout after Halim reportedly provided useful information during questioning.

A fierce gun battle later erupted between security operatives and members of the kidnapping syndicate, resulting in the death of the gang leader, Edozie Obude.

Delivering the lead judgment of the Supreme Court, Justice Chioma Nwosu-Iheme held that the evidence presented by the prosecution was credible, convincing and sufficient to establish the identity and active participation of Halim in the crimes.

The apex court ruled that the testimonies and exhibits tendered during the trial firmly placed the convict at the scene of the kidnapping and linked him directly to the armed robbery operation carried out against the victim.

The court therefore dismissed Appeal No. SC/CR/913/2022 for lacking merit and affirmed the death sentence earlier imposed on the convict.

The judgment marks the final chapter in one of Delta State’s most disturbing kidnapping cases and reinforces the Supreme Court’s hard stance against violent crimes and kidnapping across the country.