Kwara Court Sentences Man To Death For Killing Final-Year Student In Suspected Ritual Case

A Kwara State High Court in Ilorin has sentenced Abdulrahman Bello to death by hanging for the gruesome murder of 24-year-old Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal, a final-year student at the Kwara State College of Education.

Justice Hannah Ajayi delivered the verdict on Thursday after a four-month trial, finding Bello guilty of the premeditated killing of Lawal, who was believed to be his lover on Facebook.

The court, however, acquitted four other men, Ahmed Abdulwasiu, Suleiman Muyideen, Jamiu Uthman, and Abdulrahmon Jamiu who were initially charged alongside Bello. The judge ruled that the prosecution failed to establish their involvement beyond reasonable doubt.

Bello, who identified himself as an Islamic cleric, admitted early in the trial to murdering Lawal for ritual purposes, claiming he needed human hands for a money-making rite. Testimonies revealed that the incident took place on February 13, 2025.

Lawal had reportedly gone to a friend’s naming ceremony before she was invited to Bello’s residence in the Offa Garage area of Ilorin. It was there she met her tragic end.

Throughout the trial, Bello gave inconsistent statements first confessing that he strangled her after multiple rounds of sex before dismembering her body, and later alleging that she died from an asthma attack, which he panicked over and tried to conceal by mutilating her remains.

Justice Ajayi described his confessions as disturbing and contradictory, but concluded that the evidence clearly pointed to intentional murder.

The chilling case has reignited conversations around ritual killings and the need for heightened vigilance and digital safety, especially among young people who initiate or maintain relationships online.