Ololade Adeyanju/
A twenty-four year old South African police constable, Austin Luciano Reynold, has been found guilty for the 2018 murder of a Nigerian, Ebuka Okoli, in Durban, Kwa Zulu Natal.
Okoli was shot at close range during an unauthorised raid by the police officer, Reynold, on the community where he resides.
He was reportedly handcuffed, robbed and shot at close range by the officer who was off duty at the time of the raid.
Judge Shyam Gyanda today found the accused guilty on one charge of murder and three charges of robbery.
The tide turned on him when his accomplice in the raid turned state witness.
Meanwhile, NUSA President, Adetola Olubajo, has welcomed the verdict of the court on the matter.
Olubajo in a statement said: “NUSA welcomes the judgment of Judge Shyam Gyanda on the brutal murder of Late Ebuka Emmanuel Okoli who was shot by a young police constable in Durban on 19th January 2018.
“Austin Luciano Reynolds, the twenty-four-year-old South African police constable, was found guilty today, Friday 29th November 2019 for the January 19 2018 murder of Ebuka Okoli a native of Anambra State in Durban, Kwa Zulu Natal.
“The accused was found guilty on all four charges, one charge of murder and three charges of robbery. The accomplice of the accused during the illegal raid turned state witness.”
The statement adds: “He (Ebuka) was robbed, tortured, handcuffed, and later shot at close range by the officer who was off-duty at the time of the raid.
“We have been monitoring the case since the inception and very grateful and appreciative of the role played by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate, because without them, this case would have been one of the numerous unresolved murder cases of Nigerians in South Africa.”
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