An Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Essien Udim Local Government Area has sentenced a 36-year-old mother of four, Uwakmfon Jonah, to life imprisonment for attempting to murder a 12-year-old pepper hawker.
The convict, a hairdresser and divorcee from Ikot Obong in Afaha Clan, Essien Udim Local Government Area, was convicted on a one-count charge of attempted murder contrary to Section 276 of the Criminal Code, Cap 38 Vol. 2, Laws of Akwa Ibom State, 2022.
The presiding judge, Justice Winifred Effiong, handed down the sentence while delivering judgment on Thursday.
The court heard that the victim had accompanied her mother, a pepper trader, to the market and was hawking fresh pepper when the defendant approached her under the pretext of buying the commodity.
According to the prosecution, the defendant told the child that an elderly customer wanted to buy her pepper but could not walk to the market.
