An Ekiti State High Court in Ado Ekiti has sentenced Olusegun Folorunso, 53, and Ajayi Dele, 51, to death by hanging for armed robbery.
The court also gave them 10 years imprisonment each for conspiracy to commit the crime.
The convicts were charged with robbing two individuals along the Erio Ekiti Road on August 24, 2022. According to court documents, they attacked their victims using guns and cutlasses, violating Section 6(b) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, Cap.R11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
The first victim, Ajogbeje Ayodeji, testified in court, recounting the harrowing experience. “Around 4 am, I and two of my brothers were travelling from Erio Ekiti to Ido Ekiti. Somewhere in the bush, we saw a barricade. Then, two armed men appeared and ordered us to lie face down. They took my ash-coloured Hyundai Sonata, a laptop, and our phones. They drove away in my car.”
Ayodeji reported the incident to the Aramoko Police Station and later to the Rapid Response Squad in Ado Ekiti. He said he “later received a call that the robbers were arrested in Ibadan.”
Prosecutor Kunle Adeyemo presented five witnesses and several exhibits, including two locally made guns and six live cartridges.
The convicts offered no witnesses in their defense and were represented by lawyers Adeyinka Opaleke and Ezekiel Agunbiade.
Justice Olusegun Ogunyemi, delivering his judgment, stated, “There are sufficient facts to infer a common intention for conspiracy and armed robbery. On Count I (Conspiracy), the defendants are sentenced to 10 years imprisonment each. On Count 2 (Armed Robbery), the defendants are to be hanged by the neck until dead. May God have mercy on your souls.”
It is unknown if and when the judgment will be executed, but the convicts have a chance of appeal. State governors also have powers of prerogative of mercy clause of the Nigerian constitution to commute or pardon convicted criminals.
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