Osun: 5 to die by hanging for murder of Fulani herder
From Lateef Dada, Osogbo
Five people – Ibrahim Issa, Lateef Bello, AbdulRamon Soliu, Bello Ibrahim, and AbuduMumini Saheed – have been sentenced to death by hanging by an Osun State High Court sitting in Ede for the murder of a Fulani herder, Alhaji Ibrahim Adamu.
The convicts were arraigned on 28 October 2021 on four counts bordering on conspiracy, kidnapping, and murder, contrary to sections 324, 319, and 364 of the Criminal Code, Law of Osun State, 2002.
Counsel from the Ministry of Justice, Faremi Moses, told the court that the convicts kidnapped Adamu on 17 April 2018 around 7:45 p.m. from his residential building at Owode-Ede, in the Ede North Local Government Area of the state.
The prosecution informed the court that the convicts collected a ₦3 million ransom from the family of their victim and later killed him.
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Moses called three witnesses, including the Police Investigating Officer, Ganiyu Taofeek, who tendered several exhibits – including extra-judicial statements and a mask used by the kidnappers – to prove his case.
The prosecution witness narrated how the convicts mutilated the deceased’s corpse and dismembered it, after which they dumped the remains in the Osun River.
In his confessional statement tendered by the police, Saheed admitted that they killed their victim and shared the ransom.
Justice Kudirat Akano agreed that the prosecutor had proven the case against the convicts beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted them accordingly.
Their counsels, Bola Ige and Folashade Ipede, prayed to the court to temper justice with mercy in sentencing their clients.
Justice Akano sentenced each of the convicts to death by hanging for murder, 14 years imprisonment for conspiracy to kidnap, 14 years imprisonment for kidnapping, and 14 years imprisonment for conspiracy to murder.
