Nation
Justice for Osinachi: The Final Verdict on a Tragic Love Story
On a somber Monday afternoon in Abuja, the echoes of a tragic love story reached their final, chilling note. In a packed courtroom at the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Justice Njideka Nwosu-Iheme pronounced a sentence that many Nigerians may have long anticipated: death by hanging for Peter Nwachukwu, the husband of late gospel sensation, Osinachi Nwachukwu.
It was the grim end to a heartbreaking saga that captured the nation’s soul.
Osinachi, whose angelic voice graced churches and concert halls across Nigeria, died on April 8, 2022. Her passing was initially reported as a result of throat cancer. But behind the headlines, whispers of a darker reality grew louder. Friends, family members, and even the couple’s children began to share harrowing tales of years spent enduring abuse behind closed doors — stories of pain that her songs had never revealed.
When the truth could no longer be ignored, the government moved swiftly. On June 3, 2022, Peter Nwachukwu was arraigned on a heavy 23-count charge — among them, culpable homicide, spousal battery, child cruelty, and criminal intimidation.
The trial was long, emotional, and often harrowing. The prosecution, armed with chilling testimonies and 25 pieces of evidence, called 17 witnesses to the stand — including two of Osinachi’s children, whose tearful accounts painted a portrait of torment too painful to imagine.
Nwachukwu mounted his defence, calling four witnesses, including himself. Yet, the court found his pleas and explanations wanting.
When it came time for sentencing, his lawyer, Reginald Nwali, made one final, desperate appeal for leniency. But it was too late. Justice Nwosu-Iheme, unmoved by the defendant’s plea, made it clear: the law would take its full course.
Osinachi Nwachukwu
On Count 1 — culpable homicide — Peter Nwachukwu was sentenced to death by hanging.
For additional counts of cruelty, intimidation, and spousal battery, he received various prison terms ranging from six months to three years and was ordered to pay fines totaling N700,000.
As the judge read out the verdict, there was a heavy, almost tangible silence in the courtroom. For Osinachi’s family, friends, and fans, it was a bittersweet moment — justice delivered, but too late to save the woman whose songs brought hope even as she suffered in silence.
Beyond the walls of the courtroom, Osinachi’s case has left an indelible mark on the national consciousness, sparking urgent conversations about domestic violence, women’s rights, and the hidden horrors many endure behind closed doors.
Her voice may have been silenced too soon, but through the justice her case has wrought, Osinachi Nwachukwu’s story continues to sing — a haunting hymn of courage, suffering, and, finally, vindication.