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Ekiti court sentences two to death by hanging for armed robbery

An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado-Ekiti has sentenced Ojo Tosin Olasunkanmi, 31, and Obamoyegun Dele, 31, to death by hanging for conspiracy and armed robbery.

The judgment was delivered by Justice Bamidele Omotoso.

The convicts were arraigned alongside Adewale David, 36, who died while the case was pending. They were first charged on January 31, 2020, and the charge was later amended on March 25, 2025, to six counts of conspiracy and armed robbery, contrary to Sections 6(b) and 1(2)(a) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, Cap. RII, Vol. 14, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

According to the charge, the defendants conspired and carried out an armed robbery on August 11, 2018, at Oganganmodu, off Igbole Road, Ido-Ekiti. They were armed with guns and axes.

Items stolen during the operation included mobile phones, a Toyota Sienna Space Bus, ₦120,000 cash, laptop, DVD player, baby flask, ₦20,000 cash and ₦150,000 cash.

Testifying before the court, a victim, Ojo Bosede said she and other family members had travelled from Lagos to attend a wedding in Igbole-Ekiti. She recounted that at about 1:00 a.m., the attackers arrived at the gate, identified themselves as officers of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, and claimed they were acting on a tip that hard drugs were hidden in the house.

When the occupants refused to open the gate, the assailants scaled the fence, broke the burglary proof with a stone, and gained entry. They robbed the occupants and drove away with her Sienna bus. The incident was reported to the police the following day.

The prosecution, led by O.B. Ayeleso, called nine witnesses and tendered several exhibits, including the defendants’ statements, a black axe, 15 SIM cards, mobile phones, the recovered Sienna Space Bus, and photographs.

The defendants, represented by counsels Ogunremi Opeyemi and Oluwatoyin Marcus, testified in their own defence but did not call any witnesses.

Delivering judgment, Justice Omotoso held that the offence of conspiracy is established through the agreement or plot between parties, deduced from actions aimed at achieving a common criminal purpose.

“I finally resolved all the issues in favour of the prosecution against the defendants. Accordingly, the defendants are convicted as charged,” the judge said.

He continued: “For conspiracy and armed robbery, the sentence of this court is that the defendants, Ojo Tosin Olasunkanmi and Obamoyegun Dele, be hanged by the neck until they are dead. May God have mercy upon your souls.”

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