On the 1st of September, 1977, the deceased went to the hotel owned by the 1st accused, who as I have earlier indicated, was acquitted and discharged by the Federal Court of Appeal, to have a meal. The 1st accused felt that the deceased had accosted him and had caused the loss of his male organ. On that account the 1st accused slapped the deceased and raised an alarm. The deceased ran out of the hotel and was chased by a crowd. PW6 testified that responding to the alarm, he ran to the scene where he saw the 1st accused holding the deceased. He asked the 1st accused why he was shouting and the latter replied that the deceased had taken away his male organ. The deceased denied the allegation.

Following the advice of PW6., the crowd took the deceased to the house of the councillor of the area. Unfortunately, the councillor was not at home and so the crowd conveyed him to the school compound where the crowd of about 40 people tied his hands and feet with ropes and lynched him by hitting him with slicks and whips. Both appellants were identified by three prosecution witnesses as having been among the crowd and as having participated in the lynching. The police of¬ficer (PW7) who visited the scene of the offence immediately after its commission, found many pieces of sticks thereat.

After hearing evidence and addresses of counsel, the learned trial Judge, (Desalu, J.) dismissed all the three arms of the claim in their entirety.

Appellants were convicted of the murder of the deceased. On appeal to the Court of Appeal, the decision of the High Court was upheld.

Appellants appealed to the Supreme Court.