In a landmark judgment that reverberated across Ekiti State, an Ado-Ekiti High Court on Tuesday handed down death sentences to five men found guilty of a heinous robbery and murder that shook the community in 2021.
Justice O.O. Olatawura, who presided over the case, pronounced the sentence of death by hanging for Ojo Tope, Danilola Christopher, Joshua Adegoke, Aderopo Temitope, and Oyedele Oluwatobi after finding them guilty of armed robbery and the cold-blooded murder of a night guard, Joseph Blessing.
The violent incident occurred on Agogo Street, Ado-Ekiti, where the convicts launched a coordinated attack on unsuspecting residents, dispossessing them of cash, laptops, and mobile phones. In the course of the robbery, they murdered the night guard who was on duty, a tragic loss that added weight to the charges against them.
The prosecution team, led by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Julius Ajibare, was lauded for presenting overwhelming evidence and watertight arguments that proved the charges beyond reasonable doubt. The case, which had been closely followed by the public, underscored the state's zero-tolerance stance on violent crimes.
In addition to the capital punishment, each convict received a 21-year prison sentence for conspiracy, further emphasizing the gravity of their collective offense.
This verdict sends a strong message to criminal elements across the state: justice, though sometimes delayed, is inevitable. The people of Ekiti can only hope that this ruling offers some measure of closure to the family of the slain night guard and a stern warning to those who might seek to disrupt the peace of the community.
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