Patience Jonathan’s Worker Dies as Jewellery Theft Trial Drags Into Sixth Year
The long-running trial of 15 domestic workers accused of stealing former First Lady Patience Jonathan’s jewellery has claimed a tragic twist with the death of one defendant, Sahabi Liman.
Liman, 45, who had been on bail for three years after falling gravely ill in prison, died over the weekend at a hospital in Port Harcourt. His family said his health collapsed during detention at Okaka Correctional Centre, Yenagoa, and never fully recovered.
“He was granted bail to treat himself, but the sickness kept coming back. We were with him on Friday night; by midnight, we got the call that he had died,” his son told reporters.
Family sources linked his illness to the harsh conditions in prison, claiming he only got bail when it was clear he might not survive.
His death comes just days before a Bayelsa High Court ruling on September 24, 2025, that could decide the fate of the remaining 14 defendants.
The workers, arrested in 2019, insist they were tortured into signing confessions. Some testified they were flogged until they collapsed, naming police officer O.C. Chris and Mrs Jonathan’s Chief Security Officer, Colin Otutu, among those involved.
The court will now determine whether those statements are admissible. Defence lawyers argue they were extracted under duress, while the prosecution insists otherwise.
Six years on, repeated adjournments and motions have kept the case unresolved, leaving the surviving defendants in prolonged detention. Liman’s death has intensified calls for speedy justice.
