OBALUM ANEKWE V. THE STATE

A. FATAYI-WILLIAMS, J.S.C. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): In the High Court of the former East-Central State sitting at Onitsha, the accused was convicted on 26th July, 1975, of the murder of one Nwagwu Oguejiofor and sentenced to death.

The only eyewitness account as to how the deceased died was given by one Joseph Udemadu (2nd P.W.), a wood-cutter. This witness had earlier made a written statement to the police on 16th September, 1974, that is, about five weeks after the death of the deceased on 11th August, 1974.

The statement reads -

"I am a wood cutter, I was staying at Anoku near Forest Reserve Aguleri Otu. On a certain day in the afternoon I was paddling my canoe on the Anambra river when I heard a cry which stated: I am killed, Obalum has killed me. I saw a river road which went into a farm owned by one Okechukwu, as I was going further, I saw the said Obalum coming out from that direction, I went and I asked him, Obalum, who was crying? He said that he did not know, he wa…