A UK court has found 28-year-old Congolese national, Benjamin Katabana, guilty of murdering Uchenna Okirie, a Nigerian student, following a brutal knife attack at a shared accommodation in Norwich, England.
The verdict was delivered by a jury at Norwich Crown Court after an 11-day trial, months after the tragic incident that shocked both the Nigerian community and residents in the area.
According to investigators, Okirie was attacked in a communal corridor on November 22, 2025, after Katabana allegedly lured him there through WhatsApp messages. CCTV footage presented in court reportedly showed the Nigerian student using his phone when Katabana launched a sustained knife attack, stabbing him multiple times and leaving him fatally wounded.
Although Katabana admitted to killing Okirie, he pleaded guilty to manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility, claiming his actions were influenced by trauma from his upbringing in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
However, the jury rejected the argument and convicted him of murder, ruling that the attack was deliberate and unprovoked.
Police said Katabana later handed himself in and reportedly told officers, “I have killed someone, I think.” A post-mortem examination confirmed that Okirie died from a stab wound to the chest.
Reacting to the verdict, senior investigating officer Alix Wright described the killing as a calculated attack and expressed hope that the conviction would bring some measure of justice to the victim’s family.
The court is yet to announce a sentencing date.
Following Okirie’s death, members of the Nigerian community in Norwich launched a fundraising campaign to help return his remains to Nigeria for burial.
Source: Norfolk Police
