An Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City has sentenced four men to death for kidnapping, cultism and other violent crimes.
The Special Criminal Court, presided over by Justice Terry Momodu Aigbona, delivered the judgment after more than three hours of proceedings.
The court convicted the alleged gang leader, 32-year-old Isaac Marvellous, on all 11 counts and sentenced him to death. The court also ordered that the condemned persons be executed by hanging or lethal injection.
The other convicts are Wisdom Michael, 36; Rufus Michael, 30; and Gift Raphael, 27.
The four men were convicted on an 11-count charge bordering on kidnapping, membership of a secret cult and other violent offences.
The court also imposed various prison terms on other defendants and ordered that firearms recovered from the convicts and tendered as exhibits be handed over to the Federal Government.