Astudent of Government Technical College Bukuru (BUTECHS), Plateau State, Emmanuel Ude, has been sentenced to death by hanging for stabbing his teacher, Job Dashe, to death for confronting him over breaching dining hall rules.
A High Court in Plateau State delivered the verdict on Monday after finding Ude guilty of culpable homicide under Sections 221 and 222 of the Plateau State Penal Code, which prescribe the death penalty for the offence.
According to one account, the incident happened in July 2021 when Mr. Dashe, serving as Duty Master at the college in Jos South Local Government Area, asked Ude to open his food flask on suspicion that he had obtained food illegally. He refused.
Minutes later, Ude went to the dormitory, returned with a knife, and stabbed the teacher in the chest before fleeing the scene. Mr. Dashe was rushed to a hospital along Vom Road but was later confirmed dead.
However, another account claims that Ude, who was 17 at the time, fatally stabbed his teacher after being flogged for arriving late to the cafeteria during breakfast and lunch hours.
The victim, Dashe, was a Physics teacher and a graduate of the University of Jos. He reportedly left behind a pregnant wife, whom he had married in November 2020.
Following a police investigation, Ude was arrested and made a confessional statement at the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which was admitted as key evidence in the trial.
The prosecution, led by state counsel Nansil Mbah and Solomon Deme from the Plateau State Ministry of Justice, argued that the act was premeditated and deliberate. The trial lasted nearly four years.
Defence counsel Josil Drinkat pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy, noting that the convict had shown remorse during the trial.
However, Justice Silas Bakfur stated that while the court acknowledged the convict’s remorse, the law left no room for leniency in such circumstances.
He said, “The prosecution has proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. The hands of the court are tied; I can only do what the law prescribes in such a situation.”
Ude was convicted and sentenced to death by hanging until certified dead.
