A High Court sitting in Akwa Ibom State has delivered a landmark judgment in one of the most disturbing murder cases to have gripped the state in recent years — the brutal killing of Gabriel Bassey Edward, a final-year Engineering student of the University of Uyo.
On Wednesday, February 19, 2026, Hon. Justice Gabriel Ette of the Akwa Ibom State High Court found Prince Emmanuel, a self-proclaimed pastor of Winners Chapel, Atakpa Ifa Ikot Ubo Etoi in Ikot Okpon, Uyo, guilty of the murder of Gabriel. The court accordingly sentenced him to death.
Gabriel was murdered in December 2020 — more than five years ago — in what has been described by those who knew him as a senseless and gruesome act of betrayal. He had rented a portion of his home to Prince Emmanuel, who used the space as a church parish. In return, Emmanuel took his life.
"Gabriel was a peaceful young man whose only crime was that he rented a part of his home to Prince Emmanuel for him to use as a Church parish."
According to the lawyer to the deceased’s family, who was also a close friend and Facebook associate of Gabriel, the events surrounding the murder were deeply disturbing. Upon visiting the scene, he found bloodstains on the floor and on plastic chairs in the hall where Emmanuel held his church services.
A subsequent search of the residential home of ‘Pastor’ Prince Emmanuel, conducted alongside the police, uncovered properties belonging to Gabriel. Neighbours who gave evidence during trial recounted hearing screams from the house. They also confirmed seeing the accused fetching water with buckets visibly stained with blood. When confronted, Emmanuel claimed the screams were from prayer sessions.
Prince Emmanuel was identified as the last person seen with Gabriel before his disappearance and eventual death. No convincing alibi was offered, and the evidence presented in court painted a damning picture of premeditated violence.
Gabriel Bassey Edward was more than a statistic. He was a brilliant and outspoken young man, known for using his Facebook platform to speak truth to power and hold leaders accountable. Those who knew him described him as principled and passionate — the kind of voice Nigerian society can ill afford to lose.
At the time of his murder, he was in his final year of studying Engineering at the University of Uyo, on the verge of a future cut tragically short.
Special commendation has been extended to Ms. Iniobong Essang, Esq., a prosecutor from the Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Justice, for her diligence and painstaking effort throughout the prosecution. Her commitment to seeing the case to its just conclusion was a significant factor in the outcome.
The family of Gabriel — his father, Emana Edward, and his brother, Emmanuel Bassey Edward — have also been praised for their courage and perseverance in the long and often painful pursuit of justice over five years.
The family’s legal representative has used this judgment as an occasion to urge religious organisations across Nigeria to conduct thorough background screening of individuals they intend to ordain or appoint as ministers. The case of Prince Emmanuel, who operated under the banner of a church, serves as a sobering reminder of the dangers of unchecked access to positions of spiritual authority.
Today’s verdict is not just a victory for Gabriel’s family. It is a victory for every Nigerian who believes that no life is expendable and that justice, no matter how long it takes, must prevail.
Continue to rest in peace, Gabriel Bassey Edwars