Dare Babalola
An Akwa Ibom High Court has sentenced Prince Emmanuel, a self-proclaimed pastor of Winners Chapel, to death for the gruesome murder of Gabriel Bassey Edward, a final-year engineering student of the University of Uyo.
The sentencing, delivered by Hon. Justice Gabriel Nkanang on Thursday, February 19, 2026, brings closure to Gabriel’s family after a five-year wait.
Gabriel was brutally killed in his home in December 2020, where Emmanuel had been renting a space for his church parish.
The prosecution, led by Ms. Iniobong Essang, presented evidence, including testimonies from neighbors who saw Emmanuel fetching water with blood-stained buckets and heard screams from the house.
Human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong posted the development via X on Thursday, praising the judge for upholding justice and thanked the prosecutor for her diligence.
“I have just received a cheering news from the family of my late Facebook friend, Gabriel Bassey Edward, who was gruesomely murdered in December 2020 by his tenant, a self-proclaimed pastor of Winners Chapel, Atakpa Ifa Ikot Ubo Etoi in Ikot Okpon, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State,” he stated.
The lawyer added, “Five years after, the High Court of Akwa Ibom State presided over by Hon. Justice Gabriel Nkanang, has today, 19th February, 2026, found the fake pastor, Prince Emmanuel, guilty of murdering Gabriel, and accordingly sentenced him to death.”
Effiong also urged churches to thoroughly screen potential ministers and commended Gabriel’s family for their courage in seeking justice.
He wrote, “As the lawyer to the deceased family, I am using this opportunity to admonish Churches to do thorough screening of those they intend to ordain as ministers.”
Gabriel, known for speaking truth to power on social media, was remembered as a peaceful and brilliant young man whose only mistake was renting part of his home to Emmanuel.
