The Akwa Ibom State High Court, sitting in Essien Udim Local Government Area, has sentenced a 36-year-old mother of four, Uwakmfon Jonah, to life imprisonment for the attempted murder of a 12-year-old girl. The convict, a hairdresser and divorcee from Ikot Obong in Afaha Clan, was found guilty on a one-count charge of attempted murder contrary to Section 276 of the Criminal Code, Cap 38 Vol. 2, Laws of Akwa Ibom State, 2022.
Court Delivers Verdict on June 25, 2026
Presiding Judge Justice Winifred Effiong announced the sentence on Thursday, June 25, 2026, after concluding that the prosecution had proven all elements of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt. The court heard that the victim was accompanying her mother, a pepper trader, at the market when the defendant approached her under the pretext of buying pepper.
The young girl testified that the defendant deceived her into following her into a nearby bush. “I followed the lady because she put on a nice dress. Reaching the road to the bush, I told her that the road is too far that I can’t continue the movement again. At that juncture, the lady held me and I ran from the bush. The lady ran after me and I fell inside the bush and the lady held my cloth and tied it around my mouth, so that is where I could not shout for help,” the victim narrated. “She brought a knife from the bag and cut my left eye blow and my right side of my neck and the lady ran away. The bush is close to Urua Akpan market in Essien Udim.”
Details of the Attack
According to the child, the woman told her that an elderly customer wanted to buy her pepper but could not walk to the market and did not have enough money. The woman persuaded the girl to accompany her to a nearby bush where her mother was allegedly cultivating waterleaf and could make payment. Trusting the woman, the young girl followed her into the secluded area. When the girl became suspicious and attempted to turn back, the defendant attacked her, tied her mouth with cloth to prevent screaming, attempted to gouge out one of her eyes, and inflicted a deep cut on her neck before fleeing.
The defendant was arraigned on August 12, 2024. The charge was read and interpreted to her in the Annang language, and she pleaded not guilty. During the trial, the prosecution called three witnesses and tendered the defendant’s statement and the victim’s statement as exhibits. In her defence, Uwakmfon admitted approaching the child in the market and leading her into the bush but denied attacking the victim, claiming she handed the child over to another woman who was cultivating waterleaf nearby.
Court Rejects Defence Claim
In her judgment, Justice Effiong held that the defendant failed to provide the identity, address, or any description of the alleged woman, describing the defendant’s claim as unsubstantiated and unbelievable. The court found that the prosecution had successfully established that the defendant was the person who lured the victim away from the market and into the bush. Several independent circumstances corroborated the victim’s testimony, including the injuries sustained by the child, the defendant’s admission that she took the victim into the bush, and the immediate identification of the defendant by the victim while receiving treatment at Saint Mary’s Hospital, Urua Akpan.
The judge further observed that the defendant failed to provide any credible explanation regarding the alleged third party she claimed to have handed the child over to. The court held that the circumstances clearly demonstrated an intention to kill. “The defendant lured a vulnerable child away from the safety of a public market and into a secluded bush. The child sustained a deep cut to the neck and injuries to the eye. The neck is one of the most vital and vulnerable parts of the human body. A person who deliberately inflicts a deep cut on the neck of a helpless child must be presumed to intend the natural and probable consequences of such an act. The fact that the child survived does not negate the intention,” the court held.
Mandatory Life Sentence Imposed
Justice Effiong stated that the prosecution had proved all ingredients of the offence beyond a reasonable doubt. “The evidence of PW2 was direct, credible and substantially corroborated by surrounding circumstances. The defendant’s own admission that she took the child from the market into the bush constitutes a powerful link in the chain of evidence. Her attempt to shift responsibility to an unnamed and unidentifiable third party is unbelievable and incapable of creating any reasonable doubt,” the judge said.
Following the conviction, counsel for the defendant pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy and grant her a second chance. However, Justice Effiong held that Section 276 of the Criminal Code prescribes a mandatory punishment of life imprisonment for attempted murder. “This court lacks the jurisdiction to reduce the sentence prescribed by law. Based on the above, the defendant, Uwakmfon Isaac Jonah is hereby sentenced to confinement for life,” the court concluded.
