By Jemimah Wellington, JKNewsMedia Reporter
PETER NWACHUKWU, husband of the late gospel singer Osinachi Nwachukwu, has been sentenced to death by hanging after a Federal Capital Territory High Court found him guilty of culpable homicide.
Justice Njideka Nwosu-Iheme, presiding at the Wuse Zone 2 court in Abuja, ruled on Monday that the prosecution had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt in connection with Osinachi’s death on 8 April 2022.
The judge convicted Nwachukwu following a lengthy trial that captivated national attention.
Nwachukwu faced a 23-count charge filed by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation on behalf of the Federal Government.
The charges included culpable homicide punishable by death, spousal battery, criminal intimidation, cruelty to children, and other related offences.
Throughout the trial, 17 prosecution witnesses were called, among them two of the deceased’s children, listed as Prosecution Witnesses 4 and 5.
The prosecution also submitted 25 documentary exhibits in court to support its case.
Nwachukwu, testifying in his own defence, presented four witnesses and four exhibits.
Despite efforts by his counsel, Reginald Nwali, who pleaded for leniency before sentencing, the court upheld the full weight of the law.
Prosecution counsel, Mrs Aderonke Imala, urged the court to impose the maximum penalties stipulated under the law.
Justice Nwosu-Iheme sentenced Nwachukwu to death by hanging on Count 1 — culpable homicide.
In addition, he received two years’ imprisonment each for Counts 2, 3, 8, 9, 12, 13, and 18.
The court imposed a six-month jail term on Count 10- and three-years’ imprisonment on Count 11.
Financial penalties were also handed down, with fines of ₦500,000 and ₦200,000 imposed for Counts 6 and 7 respectively.
On the long run, the verdict closes a harrowing case that has shed renewed light on domestic violence and spousal abuse within Nigerian society.
