June 30 (THEWILL) — The Bayelsa State Government will on Wednesday arraign the alleged prime suspect in the June 2025 kidnapping of Bayelsa High Court Judge, Justice E.G. Omukoro, in what is expected to be the first major prosecution arising from the high-profile abduction that rattled the state’s judiciary.
The suspect, 39-year-old Ogbonna-Otu Emizibo Dennis, popularly known as “Ogbono,” will be brought before the Bayelsa State High Court 4 in Yenagoa to face a four-count charge of conspiracy to commit felony, kidnapping, conspiracy to cause grievous harm, and attempted murder.
The case, marked BYHC/YHC/CR/44/2026, will be prosecuted by the Bayelsa State Director of Public Prosecutions, Peretimi Judith Peterside, following the conclusion of investigations by the Bayelsa State Police Command and the Office of the Attorney-General.
Judicial and police sources familiar with the case told THEWILL that Dennis, an indigene of Ekeremor Local Government Area, emerged as a principal suspect after months of investigation by operatives of the Police Violent Crime Response Unit (VCRU).
According to the sources, detectives led by CSP Chris Nwaogbo mounted surveillance on the suspect for more than five months before arresting him.
Investigators alleged that Justice Omukoro identified Dennis during a police identification parade as one of the men involved in his abduction.
Police further claimed that the suspect supplied the white Toyota Hilux allegedly used by the kidnappers to intercept and block the judge’s vehicle before he was whisked away by armed men.
During interrogation, investigators said Dennis maintained that the Hilux had been returned to its owner, a retired Brigadier General, after he completed a driving assignment.
Detectives, however, said their investigation, supported by witness statements and other evidence, indicated that the vehicle remained in his possession at the time of the kidnapping.
The investigation also allegedly linked the suspect to a residence on School Road, Edepie, Yenagoa, which police believe served as an operational base where the kidnapping was planned.
According to investigators, the same property was also used in planning the earlier abduction of hotel proprietor Aladei Godsave, suggesting possible links between the two cases.
In another development, detectives recovered a motorcycle from the suspect’s residence, which investigators alleged belonged to dismissed and wanted Police Sergeant Obrientele Ebiarede.
Police alleged that the motorcycle was used to transport food, drinks, and other logistics to kidnap victims held at a camp in the Orkaki forest located along the Bayelsa-Rivers boundary.
Sources at the Bayelsa State Ministry of Justice disclosed that prosecutors are also seeking an order under Section 7 of the Bayelsa State Kidnapping and Allied Offences Law, 2013, for the temporary forfeiture of assets allegedly connected with the kidnapping, pending the conclusion of the criminal trial.
Legal practitioners, who spoke on the development, commended the Bayelsa State Police Command and the Commissioner of Police, CP Iyamah Daniel Edebor, for what they described as a painstaking investigation that led to the filing of charges. They also praised the VCRU for tracking suspects and assembling evidence for prosecution.
Justice Omukoro was abducted on June 21, 2025, after gunmen driving a white Hilux intercepted his vehicle in Yenagoa.
The incident triggered widespread outrage among judicial officers, lawyers, and civil society groups, who described the attack as a direct assault on the administration of justice.
The judge spent 12 days in captivity before regaining his freedom unharmed on July 3, 2025.
Since then, police have arrested several suspects in connection with the crime, with investigators claiming that some made confessional statements and provided leads that culminated in further arrests
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