A. FATAYI-WILLIAMS, J.S.C. (Delivering the Leading Judgment): The appellant was the accused in Charge No. AB/10C/74. He was tried in the High Court of the East Central State sitting at Abakaliki for the murder of Nwafor Ugbo Ajagbe and was convicted and sentenced to death on the 3rd of June, 1974.
On 16th October, 1975, we allowed the appeal, set aside the conviction of the appellant, and ordered that he should be acquitted and discharged. We now give our reasons for the order we then made.
The facts as given by Alo Iteshi (2nd P/W) may be summarised as follows. On 18th March, 1973, at about 6.30 p.m., Alo Iteshi, a cow attendant and the son of the accused, saw the deceased stealing some yams from the accused's yam barn. He ran home and reported the incident to the accused who thereupon took up a stick and ran to the yam barn followed by the 2nd P/W. When the deceased saw them coming he ran out of the yam barn, threw away the yams he was carrying, and raised up the matchet which he h…