29/04/2025
Meet Justice Njideka Nwosu-Iheme, the Federal High Court Judge Who Sentenced Late Osinachi’s Husband, Peter Nwachukwu, to Death by Hanging She is the daughter of former Rivers State Governor, Dr. Peter Odili, and retired Supreme Court Justice Mary Odili.
She is married to Uzoma Nwosu-Iheme, the son of Court of Appeal Justice Chioma Nwosu-Iheme.
As of 2025, she has served four years as a High Court judge. Justice Nwosu-Iheme found Mr. Peter Nwachukwu guilty of culpable homicide leading to the death of his wife, Osinachi Nwachukwu, which occurred on April 8, 2022
Justice Njideka Nwosu-Iheme was born and raised in Rivers State, South-South Nigeria, where she had her early education.
Her appointment as a Federal High Court judge was not without controversy, as critics alleged that nepotism influenced her selection, citing her powerful family background and marriage into another judicial family.
However, the National Judicial Council (NJC) defended the appointments, affirming that all selected candidates, including Justice Nwosu-Iheme, met the necessary qualifications despite public backlash.
Apparently, Justice Nwosu-Iheme has stepped into her mother’s (Mary Odili’s) shoes in the Nigerian judiciary echelon, following her mother’s retirement in May 2022. Her ruling on the death of the late gospel singer, Osinachi Nwachukwu, remains the most popular and widely discussed case of her career as a judge so far.
