LIFE: Chidinma Ojukwu The Murder Suspect-Turned-Celebrity

As blood seeped from his mortal wounds, she stared in disbelief as it slowly but surely dawned on her that she had crossed a line. Spending time with him was meant to be a fun encounter but there he lay, dead as a doornail.

The above must have been what Chidinma Ojukwu, the 300 level student of Mass Communication at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), was thinking when Usifo Ataga met his end between June 12 and June 13, 2021.

Since her arrest and parade by the police, the murder suspect has become arguably one of the most recognizable faces in the country. 

A Killer Lurking Behind An Innocent Face?

Chidinma Ojukwu

The killing of Ataga, the CEO of Super TV, has generated quite the buzz on the internet, with many finding it hard to believe that such an innocent-looking young girl could commit such a crime. But as we all know, looks could be deceiving.

Chidinma had disclosed to detectives at the Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, SCIID, Yaba that she had been able to overpower Ataga because he was weak at the time.

According to her, the deceased had wanted another round of sex after forcefully sleeping with her when they hung out and she refused. She said he became violent and she had strangled him before killing him.

An Unexpected U-Turn

But in a stunning turn of events, Chidinma recanted, telling Crime Fighters in her latest interview that her previous statements about murdering him were borne out of pressure and the fact that nobody believed her.

“I didn’t involve anybody. I don’t know who must have come into the apartment. Definitely, somebody did that but I don’t know who that person is. I don’t know what happened when I left the room to buy food. Because of what I did after by not alerting the police and also withdrawing money from his account, I feel guilty for what happened but I did not kill him", she said.

Chidinma

The question now is, should Chidinma be making a statement to the media right now? Is there any legality to parading a murder suspect around, making her grant interviews while pressmen fire away with pen and paper?

Before we address the above, let us take a look at a case similar to Chidinma's; Frank Akpan, the young man who allegedly raped and killed Iniubong Umoren, a job seeker, in Akwa Ibom back in April.

Another Case, Same Parade, Apparent Anomalies

Umoren had been invited by Akpan for a job interview on April 29, 2021. That turned out to be the last time anyone saw her alive. Her body had been found in a shallow grave.

The late Iniubong Umoren

While confessing to the crime, Akpan had revealed that he had told the job seeker that he wanted to have sex with her and she had insisted on him using a condom. 

According to Akpan, he removed the condom and Umoren had been infuriated and had hit him on the head with a nearby stabilizer. He said in a bid to stop her, he had used the same stabilizer to hit her, leading to her death.

The "stabilizer" the suspect had been referring to was actually a pressing iron.

Akpan

Apart from both suspects in the two cases being paraded by the police, another connecting factor is the anomalies in their stories.

On her part, Chidinma initially said she killed Ataga and has only recently gone back on her words to state that she never did the deed. How can someone confess to taking another life just because he/she was "pressured" into doing so?

As for Akpan, it seems highly unlikely that a girl would consent to have sex with a total stranger on the first day of their meeting (except in the cases whereby the lady is a commercial sex worker who will be paid for it).

Akpan says she agreed to sleep with him and became violent after he removed the condom but his assertion has only made many believe that he actually tried to rape her and she resisted, and he killed her because of it. 

If both Chidinma and Akpan are lying to cover up their tracks, then that was only made possible because they were given a voice before the actual trial. But isn't hindering them from giving their account of what happened an infringement of their fundamental human right? Not according to criminologist, Dr. MaiKano Madaki.

An Exception To Human Rights Infringement

Madaki stated that the police have the right to parade a suspect because his/her fundamental human rights have been relinquished when police investigation begins. 

Via a Guardian publication, Madaki said, "When someone is suspected to have committed a crime, the person’s fundamental human rights are suspended because being a suspect; you are technically relinquishing those rights.

"That’s why during the investigation, the suspect’s house may be invaded, property impounded, and some documents seized.

"You may no longer have freedom or the right to your privacy. The suspect's speech is restrained and they are detained even while they are charged to court and standing trial."

Speaking further, he added: "The law enforcement agencies must have linked all sufficient evidence to the suspect because what is critical in any criminal investigation and prosecution is linking the crime to the suspects.

"However, the suspect will remain innocent until proven guilty by a competent court of law. Perhaps, this is one of the fundamentals that police mostly rely on before parading their suspects. The police are not empowered by the constitution to declare or pre-empt suspects, only the courts reserve that right."

What we can take away from Madaki's explanation is this; if you must parade a suspect, then do that on the basis of the court having proved them guilty of the crime they are accused of.

What Has Parading Chidinma Achieved?

So, for Chidinma Ojukwu, why has she continued to be paraded before the case has been tried in court? As long as she is still speaking, there is always the possibility of her changing her story multiple times.

Chidinma

Another thing that comes to mind is this; the press has to report the news of the crime and without the parade of the suspect by the police, how can they be sure of the identity of the person in custody?

The Only Time A Suspect Can Be Paraded

As it turns out, the law does allow the police to parade the suspect only when the identity of that person is in question. In that case, the said suspect is paraded not before the media, but in the police station, alongside eight other innocent people who have the same height, build, and complexion as the suspect. The victim would then point out the one who committed the crime out of the none persons (this is done in the presence of the suspect's lawyer).

Additionally, the Court of Appeal in Orok vs The State (2009) 13 Nigeria Weekly Law Report (NWLR) states that a parade for identification purposes can be done" if the accused was not arrested at the scene and he denied taking part in the crime, the victim did not know the accused before the offense, the victim was confronted by the accused for a very short time or the victim due to time and circumstances did not have full opportunity of observing the feature of the accused”.

What Next?

Taking the above into consideration, it can be said that in Chidinma's case, her frequent interviews have done nothing but put her more in the limelight, increasing her popularity, and some would even say, helping her garner premature sympathy.

With the family of the slain Super CEO urging the police to carry their investigation beyond Chidinma's confession, one can hardly predict how the case will end.

One thing is for sure though; we haven't seen the last of Chidinma's confessions. Members of the public only have to sit back and await the next 'episode' of the unfolding saga.