Lagos State Government on Monday re-arraigned convicted billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike, popularly known as Evans.
The Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja is hearing the case of the murder of two police officers by the billionaire kidnapper.
He and his co-defendant, Joseph Emeka, were arraigned before Justice A. O. Ogala on a five-count charge. These charges were bordering on murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy to commit kidnapping.
Reign of Terror
Evans was the notorious mastermind behind a sprawling kidnapping network that operated across several states. He coordinated multiple high-profile abductions and demanded ransoms often running into hundreds of thousands of dollars. Evans reportedly collected up to USD 1 million in ransom payments.
In his heydays, he was on the most-wanted lists in Lagos, Edo, and Anambra States. His criminal reign came to an end when he was arrested in Lagos on June 10–11, 2017 by the Inspector General of Police’s Special Intelligence Response Team (IRT) after an extensive nationwide manhunt.
Following his arrest, Evans faced multiple charges. These included kidnapping, conspiracy, unlawful possession of firearms, and attempted murder. On February 25, 2022, the Lagos High Court in Ikeja found him and two of his accomplices, Uche Amadi and Okwuchukwu Nwachukwu, guilty of kidnapping and conspiracy.
Presiding judge Justice Hakeem Oshodi sentenced them to life imprisonment. This marked one of Nigeria’s most publicized criminal convictions in recent years. In addition to that, Evans later received a separate 21-year jail sentence in another case. This involved the kidnapping of Sylvanus Ahamonu and the collection of ransom money.
Evans claims to have undergone rehabilitation during his time in prison. He reportedly offered to surrender all his assets, including 14 brand-new trucks, to the Lagos State Government as part of his plea. Evans told the court that he is “no longer a criminal.” He noted that he now serves as a teacher at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre, where he has also earned a National Certificate in Education (NCE) in Economics.
