Uyo Court Sentences Winners Chapel Pastor to Death for Murder of Landlord

A High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, has sentenced a 29-year-old pastor of Living Faith Church, also known as Winners Chapel, to death by hanging for the murder of his landlord, 23-year-old Gabriel Edward.

Justice Gabriel Ette delivered the judgment on Thursday, finding Emmanuel Umoh, resident pastor of the church’s Ifa Ikot Ubo–Ifa Ikot Okpon branch, guilty of stabbing Edward to death on 21 December 2020.

Edward was a final-year civil engineering student at the University of Uyo at the time of his death. Results released after the incident showed he graduated with a first-class degree.

The deceased had moved into his late mother’s property in Ifa Ikot Ubo to manage the estate and live closer to school. Before her death in December 2019, his mother had established a nursery school within the compound. The hall built for the school was later rented to Living Faith Church at an annual rent of N150,000 with the approval of Edward’s father, Emana Edward, a retired principal.

Court records showed that the church began using the hall before completing payment, and Umoh was later posted there as the pioneer resident pastor. Edward lived in a two-bedroom flat within the compound alongside his younger brother.

According to evidence presented in court, church property was later stored in the flat after the pastor requested access for security reasons. On the instruction of his father, Edward handed over a spare key. Soon after, items belonging to his late mother reportedly began to disappear. When confronted, the pastor claimed he had lost the key. The locks were eventually changed after funds were provided by the church’s senior pastor, and the reported theft ceased.

Tension later developed between Edward and Umoh over rent money intended for repairs in the compound.

On 21 December 2020, witnesses saw Umoh enter the premises. Neighbours later testified that they heard loud cries of “Jesus” from inside the compound. Shortly afterwards, the pastor emerged wearing a white garment stained with blood and told neighbours he had fallen while attempting to hang a banner.

Edward was not seen alive again.

His decomposing body was discovered on 26 December in his room, wrapped in a mat and bearing multiple stab wounds. A butcher’s knife was found beside him. Investigators identified Umoh as the last person seen with the deceased and noted that he could not provide a satisfactory explanation for the bloodstains on his clothing. He was subsequently arrested and charged with murder.

The defendant was arraigned on 6 December 2021 and pleaded not guilty. The prosecution called six witnesses during the trial, including the victim’s father, who recounted the events leading to the killing.

In a judgment that lasted more than two hours, Justice Ette described the case as deeply distressing and said the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. He noted the efforts of the victim’s late mother to secure a future for her children and condemned the fact that the killing occurred within premises used for worship.

The judge stressed that life is sacred and that those who claim to represent God must uphold and protect it. He held that the evidence showed the defendant inflicted multiple stab wounds despite hearing the victim’s cries.

“Having found you guilty as charged, I hereby sentence you to death by hanging,” the judge ruled.

Speaking after the judgment, prosecution counsel Iniobong Essang described the case as emotionally difficult and said the verdict demonstrated that justice had prevailed. He added that the ruling offered some comfort to the victim’s family, although it could not reverse their loss.

Family members reportedly said Edward had told relatives a day before the incident that he had recovered several missing belongings. He was killed less than 24 hours later.

The judgment brings to a close a case that has lasted more than five years, marking the end of a prolonged legal process for the victim’s family.