Four suspects were arraigned
before a Yaba Magistrate Court on Monday [Aug 27] for killing a former army
general's daughter, Cynthia Osokogu.
The suspects, Okwumo Nwabufo,
33; Ezike Olisaeloka, 23; Orji Osita, 32; and Maduakor
Chukwunonso, 25, are facing trial on an eight-count charge of felony,
conspiracy, robbery and murder.
Their charge sheet stated that the
suspects killed the deceased by administering her with 'Rohypnol
Flunitrapezam’, binding, torturing, and strangling her.
It also stated that the suspects,
along with some others at large, raped and robbed the deceased of valuables
that included an International passport, a mobile phone, shoes,
bags, wristwatches and jewellery.
Since the nature of Cynthia's
death came to light about a week ago, so much public anger, resentment and
debate has been generated over the value of the social media. The first and second defendants, Okwumo
and Ezike, had earlier been paraded by the state police
command, where they admitted to luring Cynthia to Lagos via the social network.
They
also admitted to drugging, binding, assaulting and killing her.
Cynthia's death,
according to them, was a mistake. They admitted to previously luring four other
women to hotels around Festac Town, Lagos.
The third and fourth defendants,
however, were said to be attendants at Oxpharm Pharmacy, also at Festac town,
where the drug used on the deceased was purchased.
At the sitting, Magistrate P.
Adekomaiya asked the police prosecutor, Ag. SP Chukwu Agwu to
forward the case file to the Director of Public Prosecutors (DPP). Adekomaiya
ruled that the case be adjourned to October 3, 2012 for mention, pending the
advice of the DPP.
Before the sitting, there was a
mild drama as journalists scrambled to get shots of the defendants' faces, particularly
the first and second, who had been shying away from the camera. For over 30 minutes, the scrambling
continued as other members of the public attending the high-profile case hurled
abuses on them.
"You are ashamed, abi. Why
should you be ashamed when you are terrible human beings who deserve to
die?" one woman shouted as the two suspects kept their hands tightly on
their faces.
Some even dubbed the defendants
"faces of shame", as the drama continued before the magistrate's
arrival.
