The Benin Branch of the Nigerian Bar Association has commended the Edo State Special Criminal Court following its judgment sentencing four people to death over kidnapping and other offences, describing the proceedings as evidence that serious criminal cases can be concluded quickly without sacrificing due process.
The NBA branch chairman, Omorodion Omoigui, spoke at a press conference in Benin City on Wednesday, September 30, 2026, a day after Justice Aigbona Terry Momodu delivered the Special Criminal Court’s maiden judgment in a kidnapping case.
The convicts are Marvelous Isaac, 32; Wisdom Michael, 36; Rufus Emete Michael, 30; and Gift Raphael, 27.
They were prosecuted on an 11-count charge arising from the June 14, 2026 abduction of a woman at the Vegetable Market off Airport Road in Benin City.
The charges included conspiracy, kidnapping, armed robbery, membership of a secret cult and unlawful possession of firearms.
All four had pleaded not guilty when arraigned.
Following the trial, Justice Momodu convicted them on different counts and imposed death sentences by hanging or lethal injection on the offences for which the applicable law prescribed capital punishment. The court also imposed various terms of imprisonment on some counts.
Isaac was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment on count one and death on counts two through nine. He additionally received 10 years’ imprisonment on count ten and life imprisonment on count eleven.
Wisdom Michael received seven years on count one and death sentences on counts two through nine.
Rufus Emete Michael received seven years on count one and death on several kidnapping-related counts, while Gift Raphael similarly received seven years on count one and death sentences on several other counts.
The precise convictions differed among the four defendants, meaning the judgment should not be understood as finding every defendant guilty of every charge originally filed against them.
Omoigui praised the manner in which the Special Criminal Court conducted the proceedings.
“This matter demonstrates that speed and due process can coexist, and that serious criminal cases can be resolved efficiently while fully protecting the rights of all parties,” the NBA chairman said.
He commended the prosecution and defence lawyers for what he described as professionalism and diligence throughout the proceedings.
According to Omoigui, prosecutors presented their case clearly while defence counsel performed their constitutional responsibility of protecting the rights of the accused.
He argued that their conduct demonstrated how an accelerated criminal trial could operate without abandoning the fair-hearing rights of defendants.
The NBA chairman consequently urged the Edo State Judiciary to extend similar case-management practices to other courts.
“Unnecessary adjournments should be reduced, processes should be filed and served promptly, and cases should proceed whenever they are ripe for hearing,” Omoigui said.
“This is not a call for justice to be rushed. It is a call for justice to be delivered efficiently, fairly and without avoidable delay.”
The distinction is important.
The NBA branch’s intervention focused heavily on the efficiency of the judicial process and cooperation between institutions rather than simply celebrating capital punishment as an end in itself.
The association also commended Governor Monday Okpebholo’s administration for supporting the creation of the Special Criminal Court and its wider response to kidnapping, cultism and violent crime.
Omoigui said cooperation involving the executive, judiciary, security agencies and legal practitioners contributed to the handling of the case.
The Special Criminal Court was established following growing concern about kidnapping and cult-related violence in Edo State.
The June 14 Vegetable Market kidnapping became a particularly high-profile incident because it occurred during daylight in a busy part of Benin City.
The victim, identified in court reporting as Precious Oseghale, had reportedly gone to the market with her husband and children when armed men arrived in a red Lexus RX 350.
She testified that the attackers shot at a tyre of their vehicle before abducting her after her husband escaped.
Police subsequently arrested suspects in operations conducted between June 18 and June 20 in Edo and neighbouring Delta State.
Investigators reportedly recovered a red Lexus RX 350, a pump-action shotgun, cartridges, a motorcycle and more than ₦2 million during operations connected with the case.
The prosecution called seven witnesses and tendered exhibits during the trial.
CCTV footage also featured in the evidence considered by the court.
Justice Momodu specifically highlighted the usefulness of surveillance technology, encouraging residents and businesses to consider installing CCTV systems and urging government to increase surveillance coverage in public places such as markets, parks and public institutions.
The court additionally ordered the confiscation of the pump-action firearm and cartridges tendered during the proceedings.
The weapon and ammunition are to be transferred through the appropriate authorities to the Edo State Police Command for destruction after the stipulated period.
For the Edo government, the judgment represents the first major test of its decision to accelerate prosecutions involving kidnapping and cultism.
For the NBA Benin Branch, the significance lies partly in the speed with which the case moved from the June kidnapping through investigation, prosecution and judgment in September.
Omoigui said the experience demonstrated that courts could reduce unnecessary delays while preserving defendants’ constitutional protections.
However, the judgment does not necessarily mark the end of the legal process.
Counsel to Gift Raphael has already indicated that his client intends to appeal the conviction.
Under Nigeria’s judicial system, convicted defendants can challenge decisions of a trial court before higher courts, meaning the convictions and sentences remain capable of appellate review.
Senior Advocate of Nigeria Olayiwola Afolabi has separately cautioned Edo authorities against taking steps to execute the convicts before their opportunity to appeal has been exhausted.
Afolabi said the convicts should be allowed the legally prescribed period to challenge the judgment and argued that execution should not take place while an appeal remains available.
Another lawyer, Jude Okonkwo, commended Justice Momodu’s judgment.
The competing reactions highlight an important distinction between supporting an effective criminal-justice process and determining when a death sentence can lawfully be carried out.
The trial court has pronounced its judgment, but the defendants retain legal avenues through which they may challenge their convictions and sentences.
Any eventual execution would also involve additional legal and administrative requirements beyond the trial court’s pronouncement.
The case comes as Edo authorities intensify measures against kidnapping and cultism.
Governor Okpebholo has repeatedly identified both crimes as major security concerns and has argued that stronger enforcement and faster prosecution are necessary to deter violent offenders.
The NBA branch’s statement broadly supports improvements in that justice architecture while emphasising that speed must remain compatible with fair hearing.
That principle is particularly significant in cases involving capital punishment because the consequences of judicial error can be irreversible.
Efficient prosecution therefore does not remove the requirement for prosecutors to prove offences according to law, defendants to receive proper representation and higher courts to review judgments where appeals are filed.
For Edo residents, the Vegetable Market case also demonstrates the importance of evidence in prosecuting violent crimes.
The court considered witness testimony, police investigation and physical and electronic exhibits before reaching its findings.
Justice Momodu’s comments about CCTV particularly underline how surveillance footage can help investigators reconstruct crimes and establish the identities or movements of suspects.
The wider challenge for Edo State will be determining whether faster trials are accompanied by a measurable reduction in kidnapping, cult violence and armed robbery.
Special courts can accelerate cases once suspects have been identified and charged, but preventing violent crime also depends on intelligence gathering, effective policing, community cooperation and the ability to identify criminal networks before attacks occur.
The NBA Benin Branch’s response therefore carries a broader message than support for one set of sentences.
Omoigui’s argument is that the Vegetable Market case provides an example of how security agencies, prosecutors, defence lawyers and the judiciary can perform different constitutional roles while avoiding unnecessary delays.
At the same time, the defendants’ right of appeal remains part of that same justice process.
The death sentences pronounced by the Special Criminal Court are therefore significant but not necessarily the final judicial word.
What has been established at this stage is that four defendants were convicted on various counts connected with the June 14 kidnapping, Justice Momodu imposed the penalties prescribed under the applicable laws, and the NBA Benin Branch has praised the process as an example of speedy justice conducted with due process.
The next stage will depend partly on the appeals the convicted persons choose to pursue and how higher courts assess the evidence and legal conclusions reached by the Special Criminal Court.
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