A 22-year-old Nigerian national, Martin Ekhosuehi, has been sentenced to nine years in prison in Ireland after a court found him guilty of carrying out a violent robbery that left two students traumatised.
The convict, Martin Ekhosuehi, whose address was given as Willow Gardens, Glanmire, County Cork, had pleaded not guilty to charges including aggravated burglary, assault causing harm, and making threats to kill.
The charges stemmed from an incident that occurred on July 2, 2023, at a rented student residence on Highfield Avenue, College Road in Cork.
However, a jury at the Cork Circuit Criminal Court convicted him on all counts.
On Wednesday, March 5, 2026, presiding judge Sinead Behan sentenced Ekhosuehi to 11 years in prison but suspended the final two years, leaving him to serve nine years behind bars.
During the trial, investigating officer Eoghain O’Callaghan told the court that the robbery took place at about 7 p.m. when two men forced their way into the house occupied by the students.
According to the detective, one of the suspects wore an all-black tracksuit, ski mask, and blue latex gloves while holding a large chef’s knife. The second suspect was also dressed in black and carried a flat-head screwdriver. Both reportedly demanded money from the occupants.
The intruders searched the property while asking about the location of drugs and cash. During the ordeal, the students were allegedly threatened and assaulted, with one of the attackers warning that he would begin cutting off their fingers if they did not produce valuables.
Investigators said the suspects eventually made away with €30 in cash and the victims’ phones before fleeing through the back door.
A glove left at the scene was later examined by forensic experts and reportedly contained a fingerprint that matched Ekhosuehi. Two officers who reviewed CCTV footage also identified him as a suspect.
The court heard that one of the victims had been speaking with his girlfriend in Drogheda at the time of the attack. Alarmed by suspicious sounds and the sudden end of the call, she contacted the police.
Officers from An Garda Síochána arrived shortly afterwards and announced their presence at the house, but the intruders allegedly threatened the victims not to respond.
After the suspects left the premises, police returned to find the two students visibly distressed and suffering cuts to their faces.
Both later told investigators they had been punched and repeatedly threatened during the robbery.
The court also heard that Ekhosuehi had 14 previous convictions, including offences related to drug possession, drug dealing, money laundering, possession of knives, and producing a weapon during a dispute.
In delivering the sentence, Judge Behan said the crime appeared to have been carefully planned, noting that the suspects had concealed their identities and arrived with weapons.
She added that the incident would have been deeply frightening for the victims.
The judge said the offence warranted a headline sentence of 12 years but reduced it to 11 years due to the defendant’s age and the support available from his family, while suspending the final two years of the term.
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