By Bright Tombara
Four Sentenced to Death in Bayelsa for Killing Taxi Driver
A sitting in Yenagoa has sentenced four men to death for the brutal killing of a taxi driver, Mr. Olanrewaju Ajayi, during a trip to Onne in Rivers State.
Delivering judgment on Thursday, July 10, 2025, Justice Patience Ama Zuofa Diri found the defendants—Sunday Imoh Essien, Opena Akpabio, Odogha Ebi, and Clifford Michael—guilty of conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder in the case filed as YHC/21C/2021.
The court heard that the convicts had hired Mr. Ajayi, who operated a commercial taxi service between Yenagoa and Port Harcourt, under the pretense of attending a naval event in Onne. He picked them up from Agudama-Epie in Yenagoa and drove toward their destination.
However, the trip turned deadly at Okogbe, a community in Rivers State. Under the guise of taking a bathroom break, one of the passengers asked the driver to stop. As soon as the vehicle pulled over, the group launched a violent attack. They strangled the driver with a marine rope and stabbed him to death.
After the murder, the four men dumped his body and fled with the vehicle to Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, where they sold it for N450,000.
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Reacting to the ruling, Bayelsa State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Biriyai Dambo (SAN), described the judgment as a strong statement against crime. He said the government remains committed to upholding justice and ensuring that those who take lives face the full force of the law.
