Two Men In Ekiti Sentenced To Death By Hanging For Armed Robbery

An Ekiti State High Court in Ado Ekiti has sentenced two individuals to death by hanging for armed robbery.

The convicts, Olusegun Folorunso, 53, and Ajayi Dele, 51, were tried on three counts related to conspiracy and armed robbery.

The charge read: “The convicts on August 24, 2022, along the Erio Ekiti Road did conspire to commit a felony, to wit: armed robbery, when they robbed one Ajogbeje Ayodeji of his ash-coloured Sonata Hyundai car, phone and a laptop computer.

“Also, on the same date and place, they also robbed one Oluwasegun Oke of his phone

“As of the time of the robbery, they were armed with guns and cutlasses.”

According to the charge, the offenses violate Section 6(b) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, Cap. R11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

In his testimony before the court, one of the victims, Ajogbeje Ayodeji, said, “Around 4 am, I and two of my brothers were travelling from Erio Ekiti to Ido Ekiti. Somewhere in the bush between Erio and Ido, we saw a barricade on the road; when we were thinking of what happened, we saw the two men armed with guns and cutlasses.

They pointed their guns at us and ordered us to lay face down. They collected the car key, my laptop and our phones. They entered the car and drove away.

“I first reported the case at the Aramoko Police Station and later at the Rapid Response Squad of the Nigeria Police Force in Ado Ekiti. I later received a call that the armed robbers have been arrested in Ibadan.”

The prosecutor, Kunle Adeyemo, presented five witnesses and submitted various exhibits, including the defendants’ statements, a locally made single-barreled gun, a locally made double-barreled gun, and six live cartridges.

In their defense, the defendants, represented by lawyers Adeyinka Opaleke and Ezekiel Agunbiade, did not call any witnesses.