The people of Ihe Autonomous Community in Awgu Local Government Area of Enugu State have appealed to Governor Peter Mbah to intervene and prevent the execution of their kinsman, Ifeanyi Ekoh, who was sentenced to death in Ebonyi State for murder.

Ekoh was convicted in connection with the 2012 murder of a 7-year-old girl, Ukamaka Immaculata Ogboji, in Agubia, Ikwo, Ebonyi State. Though several suspects were arrested, only Ekoh and one other were condemned to death.

At a press conference in Enugu on Thursday, the President-General of the Federation of Ihe Autonomous Communities, Anichukwu Solomon, represented by Ekoh’s nephew, Nnaemeka Nzekwe, insisted that Ekoh was wrongly convicted.

He said the community has approached the Supreme Court and is calling on Governor Mbah to engage his Ebonyi State counterpart, Francis Nwifuru, to ensure justice is served.

“We want the case reviewed so that the truth will prevail. Ekoh is innocent and was wrongly substituted for the real third suspect, who enjoys political protection and was never prosecuted,” Solomon said.

According to him, Ekoh had a strong alibi that placed him outside Ebonyi State on the date the crime occurred. “He left Ebonyi on August 16, 2012, via Young Shall Grow Motors, but the child was killed on August 19. Two individuals—Obinna Nwuruku and Ebenezer Amaga—confessed to the crime,” he explained.

The community said It had written to several key figures and institutions, including the governors of Enugu and Ebonyi states, the Chief Justice of Nigeria (past and present), the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and federal lawmakers representing Enugu West and Awgu/Aninri/Oji River.

Solomon lamented what he described as a miscarriage of justice and further alleged that Ekoh was deliberately framed while the true third suspect was shielded due to his political status. (Daily Sun: Text, Excluding Headline)