Anambra Court Sentences Vigilante to Death for Murder of Phone Repairer

A High Court in the Ogbaru Judicial Division of Anambra State has sentenced 26-year-old vigilante Onyeka Eze to death by hanging for the murder of phone repairer Anayo Ugbo. The judgment was delivered on Thursday, March 5, 2026, by Administrative Judge Charles Okaa.

The court heard that Ugbo, a resident of Ogboji Ezzagu in Ishielu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, was working at Shoe Site Market in Okpoko, Ogbaru LGA, on May 5, 2022, when Eze called him to meet the vigilante’s boss. Ugbo asked for time to finish his work, but Eze insisted he follow him to the vigilante office in a three-story building within the market. Ugbo eventually went, accompanied by a customer.

The prosecution told the court that the vigilante boss was absent, and Ugbo’s request to return to his shop was denied. Eze allegedly demanded payment for a previous dispute over a damaged chair and spilled pot of pepper soup, which Ugbo denied. A confrontation followed, during which Eze reportedly pushed Ugbo from the third floor of the building. Ugbo sustained severe head injuries and died two days later at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital.

During the trial, the prosecution presented four witnesses, including an eyewitness, a medical doctor, a police inspector, and the victim’s brother, Sunday Ugbo, who testified that the victim had recounted the incident. Eze denied the charges but could not prove he was an authorized vigilante operative.

Justice Okaa ruled that the prosecution had established the case beyond reasonable doubt, saying: “The prosecution proved the case of murder against the defendant beyond reasonable doubt.”

Eze, a native of Enueiji in Ika North Local Government Area of Delta State, was 26 at the time of the trial.