Chidinma Ojukwu, the main suspect in the murder of Super TV CEO Michael Usifo Ataga, broke her silence in court on April 17, recounting the harrowing moment she discovered Ataga’s lifeless body in a short-term rental in Lekki on June 15, 2021.
Testifying before Justice Yetunde Adesanya at a Lagos High Court located at Tafawa Balewa Square, Chidinma, a former 300-level Mass Communication student at the University of Lagos, detailed her experience.
After returning from a trip to buy food and juice, she knocked on the door multiple times without receiving a response. Pushing the door open, she was met with a shocking sight: blood on the floor and Ataga lying motionless in a pool of blood.
“I dropped everything and rushed to him,” she recalled, her voice trembling with emotion. She described his eyes as half-closed and confirmed there was no pulse.
Under the direction of her lawyer, Mr. Onwuka Egwu, Chidinma reflected on her relationship with Ataga, which began in November 2020. She explained that they had met through a mutual friend, Fiyin, who was dating Ataga’s friend James. Describing Ataga as kind and supportive, she noted that he had helped with her school fees and financed her cosmetics business.
Chidinma revealed that Ataga, originally from Edo State and living in Victoria Garden City, had three children with his estranged wife in Abuja. On June 13, 2021, he told her about his upcoming birthday and invited her to join him before he traveled to Abuja for a family event.
“Because his residence in VGC was undergoing renovations, he suggested we book a hotel or a short-let apartment in Lekki, where he had meetings planned,” she explained.
She secured a short-let apartment at 19 Adewale Street, off Ologolo Road in Lekki, which Ataga approved. They met at the apartment that evening, dined at Ango Villa restaurant, purchased wine, and returned to the apartment to eat, drink, and smoke.
Chidinma testified that on June 14, they woke up late, during which Ataga allegedly asked her to reach out to her supplier for “loud” (cannabis) and rohypnol. He sent her N15,000 for that and later another N25,000 for food. Due to COVID-related delays, she spent about two hours fetching meals. On June 15, Ataga requested more cannabis, but since he was unable to transfer funds, he instructed her to pay this time. He also gave her money for food and juice.
After encountering a mix-up over some okra soup she was sent to buy, she returned to the apartment, only to come upon a chilling scene.
“I saw blood stains, pushed the door open, and found Michael on the floor, covered in blood. I checked for a pulse, but there was none,” she recounted.
In a state of panic, she cleaned the blood off herself, changed her clothes, and gathered her belongings, including a brown envelope containing Ataga’s bank statements, ID cards, and some documents that belonged to a Mary Johnson, as well as a few pieces of jewelry, before leaving the apartment in a cab.
The trial has been adjourned until April 28, 2025, for further proceedings.
