The [Anambra State High Court](https://www.anambra.gov.ng/) sitting in Idemili Judicial Division on Monday handed down a death‑by‑hanging sentence to Ikechukwu Okoye after finding him guilty of murdering his family friend’s wife and stealing her belongings.
Judge A.O. Okuma, presiding, rejected Okoye’s claim of self‑defence and affirmed the murder conviction. The court also ruled that the charge of armed robbery could not stand because the killing occurred before any intent to rob was formed.
According to the prosecution, led by [Chief State Counsel Victoria Ononye‑Ekwerekwu](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chief_state_counsel) together with Principal State Counsels Florence Abadom‑Igweike and Nkiru Nzekwu, Okoye entered the home of Blessing Mba in Abime Village, Oba, on 22 February 2024 with the aim of taking a multi‑purpose grinding machine.
The prosecutors said an argument broke out, during which Okoye struck Mrs Mba on the head with a pestle, causing fatal injuries. He then dragged her body into the children’s bedroom, covered it with clothing and fled with the grinding machine and a generator.
The accused allegedly rode a commercial motorcycle to Afor Oba Market carrying the stolen items. The victim’s husband, who had taken the children to school earlier, saw Okoye on the bike with the grinding machine and generator, returned home, discovered his wife’s corpse and alerted security personnel, who later arrested Okoye at the market.
In his defence, Okoye denied the allegations, repudiated an earlier extra‑judicial statement in which he admitted the acts, and pleaded self‑defence, a claim the court dismissed.