After several weeks of delay by the police in order to aid their investigation into her murder, Cynthia Osokogu had been buried in her home town, Boji Boji Owa, Ika North-East Local Government Area of Delta State on Friday. Everyone present at the burial wept bitterly as the deceased’s body was given to mother earth.
The burial which should have taken place on Sept. 7 was postponed on the advice of the police, who had not concluded autopsy on the corpse at the time. Meanwhile, a Yaba Magistrate’s Court on Friday nullified the bail earlier granted to two suspects arrested in connection with the murder of Cynthia.
Five of the seven suspects, Okwumo Nwabufo, Olisaeloka Ezike, two pharmacists; Orji Osita and Chukwunonso Maduakor, and Gideon Okechukwu, had been charged with murder, rape, robbery and administering an obnoxious substance to the deceased had been remanded in Ikoyi Prison without the option of bail pending the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The two other suspects, Nonso Ezike, Olisaeloka’s and Chinonso Ezeaka had been charged with receiving and selling Cynthia’s BlackBerry phone, but they were granted bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties in like sum by another magistrate, Mr. P.A. Adekomaya, on Sept. 26, 2012.
The police, however, withdrew the earlier charges filed against all the accused persons and filed three fresh ones, bringing the total number of charges to 11 from eight, thereby nullifying the bail earlier granted two of the suspects.
Counsel to one of the suspects earlier granted bail, Mr. J.C. Ngobili, described the act as unjust and told the court that all of the new charges brought up by the police are simply repetition of the old ones, expect the ninth charge; fraudulently inviting Cynthia to Lagos.
“Counts number 10 and 11 are the same as that in the old charge sheet, no missing words, and the same sentence,” he said.
Cynthia Osokogu was murdered in Festac Area, Lagos by two Facebook friends on July 22.
Justice must be done for murderer.