Peter Nwachukwu, husband of the late gospel singer, Osinachi Nwachukwu, has been sentenced to death by hanging.
Justice Njideka Nwosu-Iheme of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, sitting in Wuse Zone 2, delivered the judgement on Monday.
The sentencing followed the dismissal of a no-case submission filed by Nwachukwu.
The court found him guilty of culpable homicide, which led to the death of his wife on April 8, 2022.
The judge held that the prosecution had met the burden of proof required by law, stating that the evidence presented sufficiently established the defendant’s guilt.
Nwachukwu was arraigned on June 3, 2022, by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (OAGF) on behalf of the Federal Government.
He faced a 23-count charge, including culpable homicide punishable by death, criminal intimidation, cruelty to children, spousal battery, and other related offenses.
Throughout the trial, the prosecution called 17 witnesses, among them two of the late Osinachi’s children, who testified as the fourth and fifth prosecution witnesses (PW4 and PW5). Additionally, 25 documents were tendered as exhibits.
For his defense, Nwachukwu personally testified and presented four other witnesses, alongside four exhibits.
Before the sentencing, the defense counsel, Reginald Nwali, made a plea for leniency in his allocutus.
On the other hand, the prosecution counsel, Mrs. Aderonke Imala, urged the court to apply the full weight of the law.
Justice Nwosu-Iheme subsequently sentenced Nwachukwu to death by hanging on Count 1.
He was also sentenced to two years’ imprisonment each on Counts 2, 3, 8, 9, 12, 13, and 18.
The court further imposed a six-month sentence on Count 10, three years’ imprisonment on Count 11, and fines of N500,000 and N200,000 on Counts 6 and 7, respectively.
The case, which captured national attention, highlighted critical issues of domestic violence and legal accountability, sparking widespread reactions across the country.
