21-year-old woman remanded in prison for reportedly killing son

 

A Chief Magistrates’ Court sitting in Makurdi on Friday remanded a 21-year-old woman, Doowuese Paul, at the Correctional Centre, Makurdi, over the alleged killing of her one-month-old son, Terhile Chupa.

Paul, a resident of No. 113, Ikyese Street in Gboko Local Government Area of Benue State, is facing a charge of culpable homicide.

At the hearing, the Chief Magistrate, Mrs Regina Alashi, declined to take the defendant’s plea on the grounds of lack of jurisdiction.

The magistrate subsequently adjourned the case until March 12, 2026, for further mention.

Earlier, the prosecuting police officer, Insp Friday Kanshio, informed the court that the matter was transferred from the ‘B’ Division Police Station in Gboko to the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Makurdi, through a letter.

According to the prosecutor, the letter indicated that on Dec. 14, 2025, police in Gboko received a distress call from an unidentified individual at No. 27 Kajo ‘C’ Street, Gboko East, alleging that the defendant had strangled her one-month-old baby to death at the residence of her friend, Ashiekaa Shieminenge.

He further told the court that the defendant was apprehended during the investigation and that the alleged offence contravenes Section 222 of the Penal Code Law of Benue, 2004.