Four persons sentenced to death for murder of brothel owner

An Ekiti State High Court in Ado Ekiti on Monday sentenced two men and two women to death by hanging for the murder of a 70-year-old pensioner, Samuel Oloyede w ho ran a brothel in the state.

They are Rashidat Abdul (37), Oluwatosin Akarakiri (32), Abdulrasheed Mutairu (22) and Iyoriochile Eromoina (18).

Justice Oluwatoyin Abodunde said, “I am persuaded that in the instant case, the prosecution have proved the ingredients of murder beyond reasonable doubt by convincing and compelling qualitative unbroken circumstantial evidence and I so hold.

“Therefore, for causing the death of Samuel Oloyede (70), in contravention of Section 316 of the Criminal Code, Cap C 16, laws of Ekiti State, Nigeria, and by the provisions of Section 301 (2)(2) of the Ekiti State of Nigeria, Criminal Justice Law 2014, the sentence of the court upon the four accused is that you be hanged by the neck until you be dead and may God have mercy on your souls.”

The  charge sheet read, “The act was committed on or about  April  5, 2017 at Odo Owa Ekiti in Ijero Council Area of Ekiti State when they conspired to murder Samuel Oloyede, contrary to Section 516A and 316  of the Criminal Code, Cap.C16, laws of Ekiti State of Nigeria 2012.”

The convicts had pleaded not guilty when the charge was read and interpreted to them.

The witnesses said the late pensioner operated a brothel in his personal house as a means of livelihood where the accused also lived.

According to them, there was a misunderstanding between the deceased and condemned persons over the sharing formula of the money from the business, following which they vacated the premises.

However, Oloyede was declared missing until his dead body was found under a heap of clothes with his hands tied.

The prosecutor, Oluwatoyin Marqus, called 12 witnesses including the doctor who carried out a  postmortem on the body.