PROSECUTION OPENS CASE AGAINST KILLABOI IN 2023 MURDER OF AUGUSTA ONUWABHAGBE
By Aishat Momoh
### LAGOS OPENS TRIAL OF ‘KILLABOI’ OVER ALLEGED MURDER OF AUGUSTA ONUWABHAGBE
The Lagos State Government on Wednesday opened its case against Benjamin Nnayereugo, popularly known as “Killaboi,” over the alleged murder of 21-year-old Augusta Onuwabhagbe in July 2023.
Nnayereugo, who fled Nigeria after the incident and later released a video purportedly confessing to the crime, pleaded not guilty when he was arraigned in November 2025. He is facing a two-count charge bordering on murder and alleged indecent interference with a corpse, contrary to Sections 165 and 222 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
The trial commenced nearly ten months after his extradition to Nigeria, following two years on the run across multiple countries before his eventual arrest in Doha, Qatar.
At the hearing before Justice Ibironke Harrison of the Lagos State High Court sitting at Igbosere, the prosecution, led by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Babajide Martins, called its first witness.
The witness, Reginald Okonye, told the court that on July 15, 2023, he accompanied his sister, Cordelia Okonye — mother of the deceased — to the defendant’s residence in Oral Estate, Ikota, Ajah, where Augusta had been staying with him as his girlfriend.
He said the deceased’s mother had been unable to reach her daughter by phone, although they had been communicating via WhatsApp. According to him, a friend of the deceased, Oyindamola, directed them to the defendant’s home.
Okonye testified that despite seeing Augusta’s car parked inside the compound of the semi-detached duplex and calling out her name repeatedly, there was no response. After reporting the matter at a nearby police station, officers obtained a search warrant and returned to the residence.
He told the court that with the aid of a rented ladder, he climbed upstairs and gained access to the apartment, where he found his niece lying lifeless, bloated, and in a pool of blood. He said the police subsequently took over the scene and evacuated the body to the mortuary, while he escorted his sister away.
The witness further stated that a search of the apartment revealed several personal belongings of the deceased. He identified photographs of the house and images of Augusta taken at the time her body was discovered.
Lead defence counsel, Marcel Oru (SAN), informed the court that he would reserve objections to the admissibility of the exhibits until a later stage in the trial. Following a brief cross-examination, the witness was discharged.
Justice Harrison adjourned the matter until Thursday, March 5, for continuation of hearing.
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