Benjamin Nnayerugo, aka, Killaboi, on Wednesday, told a Lagos State High Court sitting at the Igbosere division that alleged Instagram messages suggesting his late girlfriend, Augusta Onuwaghagbe, was arranging a sexual encounter for money left him emotionally distressed and prompted a confrontation between them.
Nnayerugo, who is standing trial before Justice Ibironke Harrison over the alleged murder of Augusta, gave the account while testifying in his defence.
He described how he monitored her Instagram account, allegedly uncovered conversations about a proposed meeting for payment, and eventually confronted her during a video call.
According to him, the incident began in late June 2023, after he lost money on a sports bet and was in a bad mood.
He said Augusta had tried to console him by reminding him of previous betting wins and encouraging him, but her efforts did not improve his mood.
Nnayerugo said Augusta subsequently returned to school, adding that he had access to her Instagram account and monitored her conversations after her departure.
He told the court that he noticed she frequently exchanged messages with accounts belonging to people who were not her friends on the platform and later deleted the conversations.
He said he monitored the account for about a week, during which he saw messages involving invitations to clubs and enquiries about her well-being.
The defendant said he later agreed with Augusta that she could visit Lagos for the weekend.
He added that he planned to log out of her account before her arrival so she would not discover that he had been monitoring her conversations.
Nnayerugo told the court that, a day before her proposed visit, he saw a message from an account identified as “Yako”.
According to him, the sender addressed Augusta as “sweetheart”, explained that he had deactivated his Snapchat account and suggested that they continue their conversation on Instagram.
He said the sender asked when she would come to Lagos, and she allegedly replied that she could come whenever he wanted.
The conversation, he claimed, subsequently turned to a discussion about payment, with Augusta allegedly insisting that she would not reduce her price.
Nnayerugo said the sender then asked her to provide her WhatsApp number so they could continue the discussion on the messaging platform.
He told the court that he became suspicious and decided to investigate further using the phone number in the conversation.
According to him, he obtained a virtual SIM card, created a WhatsApp account using the name and profile picture associated with “Yako”, and continued the conversation with Augusta while pretending to be the sender.
He said he asked her to remind him of the amount she wanted, and she allegedly quoted N1.5 million.
The defendant told the court that he offered N800,000, but she allegedly rejected the amount, explaining that she was taking a significant risk.
He said he subsequently asked whether their proposed meeting would take place in a hotel or an apartment, and she allegedly replied that either option was acceptable, provided he sent the location.
Nnayerugo said he later offered N1 million, which she allegedly rejected, before he agreed to pay the N1.5 million she had demanded.
He further claimed that he proposed that they have sex without a condom, provided they underwent medical tests beforehand, and that she agreed.
The defendant said the exchange eventually convinced him that the discussion concerned a sexual encounter for payment, although he had initially been uncertain about the purpose of the money.
He told the court that he was shaking and experiencing an emotional breakdown as the conversation unfolded.
Nnayerugo said he considered sending the money through a friend and arranging a hotel meeting where he could confront Augusta, but later abandoned the plan.
He said he reasoned that he did not need to spend such an amount to establish that his girlfriend was allegedly cheating on him.
The defendant said he subsequently decided to end the relationship and confront Augusta with the messages he had discovered.
According to him, he initiated a video call, which Augusta accepted, but she screamed and dropped the phone when she saw him.
He said he confronted her over the alleged arrangement, told her he knew what she had been doing and declared that their relationship was over.
Nnayerugo also told the court that he threatened to inform Augusta’s mother about the discovery.
He said he had a close relationship with her mother, who had been supportive of their relationship, regularly prayed for him and attended a church he sometimes visited.
The defendant said he initially could not reach her for about 20 minutes but eventually explained the messages he had discovered and informed her that he had ended the relationship.
According to him, Augusta’s mother questioned his decision to access her daughter’s account, telling him that doing so was wrong and constituted a criminal offence.
He said he became upset with her response, explaining that he had called to inform her of the breakup rather than discuss how he accessed the account.
Nnayerugo said Augusta’s mother indicated that she would speak with her daughter, but he reiterated that this was not the reason for his call before ending the conversation.
Defence seeks privacy for video recording
During the proceedings, defence counsel, Marcel Oru, raised concerns about playing a proposed video recording in the presence of Augusta’s mother and brother.
He asked the court to allow the deceased’s family members to leave while the recording was played, leaving only counsel involved in the case in the courtroom, to avoid causing them further emotional distress.
The prosecution counsel, Adebayo Araba, did not oppose the proposal.
Oru, however, clarified that the recording had not yet been tendered in evidence and that his concern was to prevent additional emotional pain to the deceased’s family.
Justice Harrison subsequently adjourned the case to Thursday, October 22.
Nnayerugo is standing trial over Augusta’s death.
The allegations he made about the deceased’s private communications were presented as part of his testimony and have not, by themselves, been established as facts by the court.
