Nine police officers commended by crown court judge for investigation into murder of student in Northampton
A group of police officers have been commended by a crown court judge for their work during the investigation into the murder of University of Northampton student – Kwabena Osei-Poku.
His Honour Judge Herbert KC resided over the six-week trial, where Melvin Lebaga-Idubor was found guilty of murdering 19-year-old Kwabena, previously known as Alfred, on the evening on Sunday April 23, last year. He was also found guilty of possession of an article with a blade or point.
Last week (August 1), Judge Herbert formally commended the Northamptonshire Police investigation team for their work on the case.
As part of his commendation, he commented on the complex nature of the investigation and how well it had been presented to the court, recognising the long hours and expertise that went into diligently and expeditiously investigating and then presenting the evidence as part of a successful prosecution, according to Northamptonshire Police.
Commended police officers and members of staff
- Detective Inspector Simon Barnes – Senior Investigating Officer
- Detective Sergeant Matt Bly – Deputy Senior Investigating Officer
- Detective Constable Mark Allbright – Officer in the Case
- Detective Constable Lee Chennell – Family Liaison Officer
- Police Sergeant Lorna Clarke – University Policing Team
- Jeff Winfield – Receiver
- Hannah White – Analyst
- Detective Constable Simon Chamberlain – Digital Media Investigator
- Linda Gibb – Digital Field Extraction Technician
Detective Chief Superintendent Rich Tompkins said: “The work that went into this investigation was tireless, diligent, caring and extremely complex, so I am really pleased to see the team formally commended by His Honour Judge Herbert KC.
“Though no sentence could ever make up for the loss of Kwabena, we were able to get justice for him and his family, and that’s down to this fantastic team of police officers and police staff.”
Kwabena was stabbed twice in New South Bridge Road, Far Cotton at around 8.50pm following an altercation, which started on University of Northampton’s Waterside campus. Sadly, and despite the best efforts of police, members of the public and paramedics, he died at the scene.
In February this year, Lebaga-Idubor, of Abbey Road, Barking and Dagenham, was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 21 years.