By Patrick Titus
“You can’t eat your cake and have it,” is a popular saying that the likes of Chinatu Iwe Abraham, 38, from Isiala Ngwa, Abia State; William ThankGod Sunday, 30; Ubon Monday Ebebe, 30; and Saturday Jonah Udo, 43, all from Idung Nneke in Ukanafun Local Government area, Akwa Ibom State thought they could undo in their criminal activities.
Yes, anything natural cannot be recreated. In the offence they committed, the position of the laws must take its cause. It will proved potent because the God of justice will always prevail sooner or later to relieve the innocent.
The four, were the ones who did not only conspire to kidnap, receive a ransom of five million Naira (N5m) from initial 500 million Naira demand from their victim but also amputated his hand before releasing him after staying in their captivity for over a week. What a level of crime!
The victim, Engr. Idongesit Damas Udom, a 62 year-old retired ExxonMobil staff, Proprietor and Chairman, Board of Trustee of Sure Foundation Polytechnic in Ukanafun, Engr. Idongesit Demas Udom. A personality who is recognized and praised for his significant contributions and dedication to transforming Ukanafun’s educational landscape, even proposing a College of Nursing Science for the polytechnic.
On a Sunday morning in April 2017, Engr Udom was going to church when the four gangsters conspired and kidnapped him. Days after they opened a communication line with his family and demanded 500 million Naira ransom, an amount they had insisted should be paid immediately by the family to secure his release or they waste him away.
According to his family source, the money was outrageous but when asked how they (kidnappers) expect the family members to raise such huge amounts of money, they told the family to sell the polytechnic to realize the money. After much pleading and negotiations, five million Naira (N5m) was paid.
After ten days, upon collecting the N5m ransom, he was released by his captors but with amputated hands, an evil act that even the Ukanafun community felt it was too much to bear.
But justice found it place afterwards as they were later caught by the security operatives and arraigned in the High Court, Uyo, Akwa Ibom state where the honorable presiding judge handed a death sentence to them respectively on December 11, 2025.
Day of judgement:
After over nine years of their arraignment at Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo, they trial judge on Thursday – December 11, 2025 found them culpable and sentence them to death by hanging.
The convicts:!Chinatu Iwe Abraham, 38 years old from Isiala Ngwa, Abia State; William ThankGod Sunday, 30; Ubon Monday Ebebe, 30; and Saturday Jonah Udo, 43, all from Idung Nneke in Ukanafun Local Government Area, were found guilty on all the three counts bordering on conspiracy, kidnapping, and wounding with intent to maim, disfigure or disable.
The judgment was delivered in a four-hour reading by Justice Gabriel Ette, who held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Three Others Discharged and Acquitted:
Three other defendants who stood trial alongside them: Kingsley John Akpan, 32 years old; Etimefiok Ime Ezekiel, 37 and Joseph Sunday Etim, 31, were discharged and acquitted for lack of sufficient evidence linking them to the crime.
How A Cult Carnival Dispute Led To Kidnap Plot:
In the course of trial, the prosecution called five witnesses, including the victim, while the seven defendants testified personally.
The victim, PW1, Elder Idongesit Demas Udom, narrated how the crisis began on 20th December 2016 when the second convict, William ThankGod Sunday, attempted to organize a second “cultist carnival” in their village.
According to Udom, the billboard announcing the carnival highlighted activities such as smoking, drinking and eating competitions, prompting the elders to intervene.
A meeting was convened at his residence, being the Administrator of the Royal Family and President of Idung Nneke Development Association, where it was resolved that the carnival would not be allowed due to its corrupting influence on youths.
The elders had previously stopped a similar carnival in 2015, which they said led to the initiation of several minors into cult groups.
Following the disagreement, the village reported the matter to the Divisional Police Officer, DPO of Ukanafun, who deployed officers to prevent the event from holding.
This intervention, the court heard, angered the second convict, who blamed Udom for his failure in the subsequent village youth leadership election.
He allegedly sent a threat letter to Udom’s brother, the Village Head, warning that he would kill three students from Udom’s polytechnic, if he was “betrayed” again.
Despite the threats, Udom testified that he did not take them seriously, noting that he once helped secure the convict’s release from detention in Isiala Ngwa, where he had been held for robbery.
The Kidnap Conspiracy And Attack
On 16th March 2017, the second convict allegedly convened a meeting with his associates including the third convict, Ubon Monday Ebebe; the fifth defendant, Etimefiok Ime Ezekiel,; and a fleeing suspect, Saviour Paul Matthew, where he mobilized kidnappers from Abia State to abduct the victim.
According to testimony, kidnappers from Ukanafun, including the notorious Iso Akpafid, had refused to kidnap Elder Idongesit Udom due to his popularity and contributions to community development.
It was this meeting, the Court held, that set the stage for the eventual abduction and mutilation of the victim after the kidnappers collected N5m ransom.
Court Decision – Guilty On All Counts:
Delivering judgment today, 11th December, 2025, Justice Gabriel Ette held:
“From the totality of the evidence adduced before me, I hold that the following defendants: Chinatu Iwe Abraham; William ThankGod Sunday; Ubon Monday Ebebe; and Saturday Jonah Udo,!are guilty as charged.”
The judge held that the prosecution successfully proved all three counts, leading to the following sentences:
Count 1 – Conspiracy: Seven years imprisonment for each convict.
Count 2 – Kidnapping: Death by hanging, with the judge pronouncing: “May the Lord have mercy on your souls.”
Count 3 – Wounding with Intent to Maim: Three years imprisonment each.
