A “callous” murderer who killed a mother and her nephew has won a European human rights claim.
A European court has determined that the human rights of 32-year-old Obina Christopher Ezeoke were violated due to the lengthy delay in his trial.
Ezeoke underwent five trials before being convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment, with a recommendation for a minimum of 40 years to be served.
The European Court of Human Rights ruled that the five-year process leading to Ezeoke’s conviction violated Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees a fair public hearing within a “reasonable time” for any suspect.
Ezeoke underwent five trials before being convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment
MET POLICE
However, Ezeoke’s request for immediate release from his life sentence was denied.
The court ruled that despite the delays, his conviction and sentence were fair and did not violate Article 6 in that regard. Additionally, the court determined he was not entitled to any compensation.
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick said: “This is the latest extraordinary example of judicial activism by the Strasbourg court. It only seems to get worse.”
Ezeoke murdered Annie Ekofo, 53, and her nephew Bervil Kalikaka-Ekofo, 21, after sneaking into their unlocked home in East Finchley, North London in 2016.
Ezeoke murdered Annie Ekofo, 53, and her nephew Bervil Kalikaka-Ekofo, 21, after sneaking into their unlocked home in East Finchley, North London in 2016
PA
The killing was intented as revenge after Ekofo’s son, Ryan Efey, 22, shared footage of him being attacked on Snapchat.
The Old Bailey heard Efey was most likely the intended target, but the killer decided to kill anyone in the flat.
Ezeoke used a Western-style revolver to fire a bullet into the back of the 21-year-old’s head before turning around and shooting his aunt in the chest with the Smith and Wesson. 44.
During sentencing, Judge Justice Cutts stated she had considered a whole-life order but ultimately decided on a life sentence with a minimum term of 40 years.
She said: “Your cold, callous and brutal murders of two people has not only cut short their lives but has ruined the lives of many.”
Juries in May 2018 and March 2019 were unable to reach verdicts, despite the majority of jurors favoring a conviction.
In 2017, the trial was halted when a judge had to withdraw due to severe back pain.
Prosecutors made the unusual decision to pursue a fifth trial after the previous hearing collapsed due to the coronavirus pandemic in March.
The court found there were two delays that were ‘problematic’
GETTY
Defence lawyers for the defendant argued that “enough is enough” and opposed the continuation of the trial.
In his submission to the European court, the double murderer claimed the repeated delays “had such a detrimental effect on the quality of the defence evidence that the outcome of the fifth trial was ‘at least arguably’ unsafe”.
The court found there were two delays that were “problematic”, specifically the year between the third and fourth trial, and the six months before his permission to appeal was denied.
It unanimously agreed that “there has been a violation of Article 6 of the Convention on account of the excessive length of the criminal proceedings against the applicant”.
