Court sentences Living Faith Pastor to death for killing Landlord in Akwa Ibom

A resident pastor of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Prince Emmanuel Umoh, has been sentenced to death by hanging by an Akwa Ibom State High Court in Uyo for the murder of his landlord, Gabriel Bassey Edward.

Delivering judgment on Thursday, Justice Gabriel Ette found the 29-year-old clergyman guilty of fatally stabbing Edward on December 21, 2020. The court held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.

Evidence presented during the trial showed that Umoh, the pioneer resident pastor of the Ifa Ikot Ubo–Ifa Ikot Okpon branch, entered the compound where the victim lived and was later seen wearing a white garment stained with blood. He reportedly told neighbours he had fallen while hanging a banner. Residents had earlier heard screams from within the premises on the day of the incident.

Edward, a 500-level civil engineering student at the University of Uyo, had moved into his late mother’s property to safeguard the estate and live closer to school. His decomposing body was discovered on December 26, 2020, wrapped in a mat inside his room, bearing multiple lacerations. A butcher’s knife was found beside him.

The prosecution called six witnesses and relied on circumstantial evidence linking the pastor to the crime. It argued that tensions had arisen between the two men over access to church property allegedly stored in the victim’s apartment and disputes concerning unpaid rent.

In his ruling, Justice Ette described the act as a grave betrayal of trust by a religious leader and sentenced Umoh to death by hanging.

The conviction concludes nearly six years of prosecution by the Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Justice, which arraigned Umoh on a one-count charge of murder on December 6, 2021. He had maintained his innocence throughout the trial.

In a poignant aftermath, Edward’s academic results released posthumously showed he graduated with a First Class degree, deepening public sympathy for his family and amplifying calls for justice.

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