Court Sentences Man To 4 years Imprisonment Over Wife's Murder In Abuja

A man identified as Ayedun Makanjuola was sentenced to four years imprisonment on Wednesday, March 27, by an FCT High Court in Apo, Abuja,  for running over and killing his wife, Adenike Ayedun, a World Bank staff.

The prosecution counsel, Adama Musa, told the court that Makanjuola reversed his car and ran over his wife which led to her death on May 7, 2021, in Gwagwalada, after a misunderstanding they had.

Justice Angela Otaluka held that the late wife’s act was provocative when she threw her husband’s food and also threw a stone at the rear windscreen of his car while he tried to drive out.

Justice Angela said she did not consider Makanjuola reversing his car as a retaliation but as a loss of control of his feelings.

"It was not a deliberate action, but sudden. The prosecution has failed to prove the intent of the defendant but has proven the offence of culpable homicide," she said.

“I find the defendant guilty of culpable homicide not punishable with death and convict him.”

The defence counsel, Kolade Adeboyega, told the court that the defendant was a responsible man and was planning a trip to bring their two children home with his wife before the incident.

Adeboyega, therefore, urged the court to consider the children who were presently with their grandmother.

Justice Angela, however, sentenced the defendant to four years imprisonment, inclusive of the two years, 10 months he had already spent, citing Sections 222 and 224 of the Penal Code.