The Kwara state Police command on Tuesday arraigned ‘a second class monarch from Odo-Owa, Oke-Ero local government area, Oba Joshua Adeyemi Adimula, for allegedly trespassing on a church land and threat to life.
In the case number MCIA/374/2019, the clergy in charge of St Thomas Catholic Church, Odo-Owa, Rev. Pius Obikwelu accused the monarch of trespassing into the church’s parcel of land in the community.
In the police First Information Report (FIR), the case was transferred on February 25th, 2019 from “Area Commander Omu-Aran, Irepodun local government of the state to the Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Department, Ilorin for discreet investigation.”
The catholic father in a petition dated November 20th, 2018 reported Oba Adimula over “trespass into his chruch parcel of land situated beside St Thomas Catholics Primary School Odo-Owa and placed an object suspected to be juju on the said land; that in the process, the monarch also threatened that evil would befall anybody who dares remove the object.
“Investigation conducted by the state CIID Ilorin, revealed that you Oba Adimula who ought to be promoter of peace within your domain criminally trespassed into the complainant’s land.”
Hearing of the case slated for commencement on Tuesday could not hold, because the prosecution counsel, Nasir Yusuf, got the case file around 8:30am.
Mr. Yusuf told the court that “ordinarily, the case is slated for hearing today, but I got the case file this morning. Upon perusal, I discovered that it will not be appropriate to continue with the hearing based on my discussion with my senior learned colleague. We are therefore, applying for another day for hearing.”
The presiding Chief Magistrate A.M Ibrahim then adjourned the case to September 24, for commencement of hearing.