November 28, 2025
By Ayinde Adeleke
A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has sentenced a 400-level Petrochemical Engineering student of the University of Port Harcourt, Damian Okoligwe, to death by hanging for the murder of his girlfriend, Justina Otuene, a 300-level Biochemistry student of the same institution.
Okoligwe, 26, was found guilty of killing Justina in October 2023 at his residence.
Delivering judgment on Thursday, Justice Chiwen Nsirim Nwosu ruled that the prosecution, led by Charles Obediah-Mbaba, had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and established that the defendant was responsible for the death of the victim.
Okoligwe was arrested in 2023 after neighbours alerted security operatives to his suspicious behaviour, prompting an investigation that led to his prosecution.
The court’s decision brings an end to a case that drew significant attention within the university community and the state.
