The video was shown on a big screen in the courtroom and included disturbing footage of Ataga's lifeless body shortly after he was discovered in a Lagos short-let apartment.
The main suspect in Ataga's murder is Miss Chidinma Ojukwu, a mass communication student at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) doing 300-level courses.
Ataga could be seen in the footage lying on the ground with his hands outstretched while donning a white singlet and blood-stained boxers. Blood was on the floor on his right side, and his head was close to the wall.
The floor, pillow, and duvet cover all had noticeable blood stains.
Chidinma Ojukwu described how she killed Ataga while being questioned by Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Olusegun Bamidele from the Intelligence and Tactical Unit of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Panti, Yaba. She claimed that she met Ataga through a friend and the two of them struck up a conversation.
He asked her to find a location for them to stay on June 13, 2021, so she obtained the short-let apartment where they consumed food, alcohol, and drugs and where he was killed.
She stated:
After I got the place on Sunday, we were smoking loud, drinking, watching movies and then I went to get food. The drug we were taking got finished and I ordered another one and went downstairs to get it from the delivery guy in the morning; that was on June 14, 2021.
“Then on Tuesday, we drank and smoked loud and I added Rophynol to his drink and we had sex. I was on the bed and he was on the chair. Then later he started disturbing me for more sex. I was tired and after struggling with him, he had his way and still wanted more.
“He wanted it, he was no longer himself and I thought he was no more interested in sex, only for him to return to the bed to ask for more sex. I pushed him away, which resulted in him hitting his head against a stool that had a glass. He had a cut on his leg and he became weak.
“I got a knife and stabbed him in the neck, ribs and stomach so that he would not be able to harm me. I tied his hands with handkerchief.
“His blood was out and I was scared. I just packed everything, my clothes were also stained with blood, I just packed my things and left.
“I took the knife and handkerchief and when I got home, I threw the knife and handkerchief away.
“Michael (Ataga) was a friend, that we just talked. I didn’t know him that deep and we did not talk regularly.
Ojukwu responded, "There was nobody that assisted me, I did it alone," in response to the question about whether she needed help killing the victim because of his build.
"Obviously I was terrified that's why I fled," she replied when asked why she didn't call for assistance.
When asked why she killed Ataga, she responded, "There was no motivation behind it."
According to The Nation, DSP Bamidele, the ninth witness for the prosecution, also questioned Ojukwu about why she was using a foreign number and why she was hiding her number. The defendant replied that she had already established a foreign phone number on social media, which she used to talk with people.
She responded, "She didn't ask for my identification," when asked why the proprietor of the service apartment didn't recognize her. I received a text message. I would have left for another location if she had claimed the space wasn't available.
When asked why she used the fictitious name "Mary Johnson" to open a bank account, the defendant claimed she first tried using her own name, but the account was shut down; as a result, she chose Mary Johnson.
During the prosecution's attorney Mrs. Adenike Oluwafemi's chief cross-examination, Bamidele claimed that the police had found some items at the defendant's home, including an HP laptop, an iPhone, a small pink purse containing two syringes, eight pieces of Rophynol tablets, two sanitary pads, a small perfume, and jewelry.
Other materials were the defendant's identification card with the name Ojukwu Chidinma Adora, Ataga's driver's license, Ojukwu's UBA ATM card, Ataga's Super net identification card, three further cards with the deceased's name, and six additional blank cards.
Justice Adesanya quickly ruled, overruling the defendant's argument and admitting the goods into evidence.
The trial was continued after the case was postponed until October 12.
Start a discussion...