JOS, Nigeria – A High Court in Plateau State has sentenced two men, Thomas Danboyi and Pam Lang, to death by hanging for their roles in the 2010 killing of Chung Bot.
The verdict was delivered on Wednesday, March 26, 2025, by the state’s Chief Judge, Justice David Gwong Mann, at the High Court in Jos.
In the case of State vs. Thomas Danboyi & Pam Lang (Charge No. PLD/J112C/2010), the court found the defendants guilty of criminal conspiracy and culpable homicide.
Justice Mann noted that the offences were punishable under the Penal Code Law of Northern Nigeria, 1963, which was applicable to Plateau State at the time of the crime.
According to the prosecution, led by Plateau State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, P.A. Daffi, the crime occurred on April 26, 2010, in Tahai Gyel Bukuru, located in Jos South Local Government Area.
The court was informed that Chung Bot and his family had gone to their farmland in Ta Hei, Gyel, when they were attacked by the accused individuals and others who are still at large.
Evidence presented to the court showed that Danboyi restrained the victim by holding his hands behind his back, while Lang repeatedly struck Bot on the head with a stick.
The victim was rushed to Plateau Hospital in Jos, where he later succumbed to his injuries while receiving treatment.
In delivering the judgment, Justice Mann emphasized that the evidence was “overwhelming” and confirmed that the prosecution had proven, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendants conspired to commit the crime and intentionally caused the death of the victim.
Following their conviction, the defence counsel pleaded for mercy, highlighting that the convicts were responsible family men and had exhibited good conduct during the trial.
However, while Justice Mann exercised some discretion regarding the criminal conspiracy charge by sentencing both men to three years in prison, he had no such discretion regarding the charge of culpable homicide.
As per the law, the mandatory sentence for this offence was the death penalty.
