An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti has sentenced four persons to death by hanging on a three-count of conspiracy, armed robbery and murder.
The convicts are Babagida Amodu (25), Oluwafemi Ibrahim (20), Ojo Ayodele (25) and Okunato Dada (20).
Earlier, the prosecutor, Barrister Felix Awoniyi, said the accused on June 7, 2018, at Ijoka area Ado-Ekiti did conspire and robbed one Ibrahim Isiaka of his phone and the sum of N1,500, and that on the same day, date and place they murdered one Muhammed Sanusi.
The prosecutor called five witnesses and tendered statements of the four accused and a medical report as exhibits.
One of the witnesses, Ibrahim Isiaka, told the court that he and the late Sanusi were going to a mosque area to buy food and to charge phones at Ijoka around 8pm, and that “While we are approaching the charging centre, hoodlums appeared and stopped us. They demanded our phones and money. We declined given them, they dragged me and collected my Tecno phone valued at N7,500 and cash sum of N1,500. When they started beating Sanusi, I ran away to call our people. Before we got back, they had left but we met Sanusi in a pool of his blood having been stabbed on the neck. I recognised the faces of our assailants. So we reported to the police.”
The defendants spoke through their counsels, Adeyinka Opaleke, Ekiti State Coordinator of the Legal Aid Council, O. Abiola and A. Ayobioloja, but called no witness.
Justice John Adeyeye, in his ruling, said, “It is obvious that the defendants acted in concert as they all agreed to rob Ibrahim Isiaka and Mohammed Sanusi who died as a result of the injury inflicted on him during the robbery.’’
Justice Adeyeye, who said the prosecution had successfully proven the three counts of conspiracy to rob, armed robbery and murder preferred against them, convicted them accordingly.
He cautioned and discharged them on count one, conspiracy, and sentenced to them to death by hanging on counts two and three, armed robbery and murder.
