A convicted double murderer has won a European human rights claim over delays to his trial – in a case branded “extraordinary judicial activism”. Obina Christopher Ezeoke, 32, was jailed for life for shooting dead psychology student Bervil Kalikaka-Ekofo, 21, and his aunt Annie Ekofo, 53, after sneaking into their flat in East Finchley, north London, in September 2016.
The European Court of Human Rights has now ruled that the length of time it took to convict Ezeoke breached his rights under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights – which guarantees a fair trial “within a reasonable time”. The case took five trials before Ezeoke was finally convicted at the Old Bailey and sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum term of 40 years. The Strasbourg court found that although the delays were not the fault of the UK courts or Government, the process had still taken too long. Judges pointed to two key periods they deemed “problematic” – a year-long delay between the third and fourth trials and a further six-month wait for a decision on an appeal.
Despite upholding Ezeoke’s claim, the court rejected his argument that the delay made his conviction unsafe. His request for immediate release and compensation was also thrown out.
The first trial in 2017 collapsed after the judge was forced to withdraw due to severe back pain. The second and third both ended in hung juries, while the fourth was derailed by the Covid pandemic. A fifth trial was held in 2020, with prosecutors saying it was in the public interest to continue despite defence lawyers arguing “enough is enough”.
The court heard Ezeoke carried out the killings as part of a revenge plot after footage of him being attacked was shared on Snapchat by rivals, including Annie Ekofo’s son Ryan Efey, who was believed to be the intended target.
Ezeoke crept into the flat through an unlocked door before shooting Mr Kalikaka-Ekofo in the head with a vintage revolver. He then shot Ms Ekofo in the chest when she emerged from her bedroom in her underwear.
Sentencing him, Mrs Justice Cutts said: “Your cold, callous and brutal murders of two people has not only cut short their lives but has ruined the lives of many.”
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick, the Conservative MP for Newark, condemned the Strasbourg ruling. He told The Telegraph: “This is the latest extraordinary example of judicial activism by the Strasbourg court. It only seems to get worse.”
Ezeoke remained in a high-security prison throughout the legal process. In his submission to the European court, he argued the repeated delays had weakened his defence and made the final outcome “at least arguably” unsafe.
However, the European judges ruled unanimously that while Article 6 had been breached, the conviction and sentence were sound.
They concluded: “There has been a violation of Article 6 of the Convention on account of the excessive length of the criminal proceedings against the applicant.”
