A High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, has sentenced a resident pastor, Emmanuel Umoh, to death by hanging for the murder of his landlord, Gabriel Bassey.
Justice Gabriel Ette delivered the judgment after finding Umoh, the resident pastor of Living Faith Church Chapel, Ifa Ikot Ubo–Ifa Ikot Okpon branch, guilty of killing Bassey, a 500-level Civil Engineering student of University of Uyo.
The court heard that the victim relocated to his late mother’s property in Ifa Ikot Ubo to safeguard the estate and live closer to school. Before her death in December 2019, his mother had established a nursery school on the premises.
Evidence showed that Bassey lived in a two-bedroom flat within the compound alongside his younger brother, while a hall originally built for school use was later rented to the church for ₦150,000 annually with the consent of his father, a retired school principal. The church was allowed to begin using the hall before completing payment, and Umoh was later posted there as the pioneer resident pastor.
The prosecution told the court that on December 21, 2020, the defendant was seen entering the compound, after which neighbours heard screams of “Jesus” from inside the premises. He later emerged wearing a white garment stained with blood, claiming he had fallen while attempting to hang a banner.
Bassey was not seen alive again. His decomposing body was discovered on December 26, 2020, wrapped in a mat inside his room with multiple cuts, while a butcher’s knife was found beside him.
Umoh, who was the last person seen with the victim and could not explain the bloodstains, was arrested and charged with murder. He pleaded not guilty when arraigned on December 6, 2021.
During the trial, the prosecution called six witnesses, including the deceased’s father, who testified that the pastor had earlier requested permission to store church property in the flat due to insecurity at the hall. After the victim provided access, household items began to go missing, leading to suspicion. The defendant later claimed he had lost the spare key. After the locks were changed, no further items were reported missing.
Tensions later developed between the two men over rent payments and repair funds for the hall.
Delivering judgment that lasted over two hours, Justice Ette described the case as “very sympathetic,” highlighting the late mother’s efforts to develop the property for educational purposes.
He condemned the act, noting the irony of a religious leader taking a life within church premises and ruled that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
“Life is sacred,” the judge stated, adding that those who betray public trust pose a danger to society.
He subsequently sentenced the pastor to death by hanging.
