An Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado Ekiti has sentenced three individuals to death by hanging after finding them guilty of armed robbery and conspiracy.
The convicts — Shadrack Apos (30), Lucky Akpos (33), and Adunola Precious (24) — were found guilty of robbing an 87-year-old woman, Victoria Folorunso, of ₦186,000 and a wristwatch during a late-night attack in Ifaki Ekiti.
They faced a two-count charge of conspiracy and armed robbery, which the court said contravened Sections 421 and 321(2)(b) of the Criminal Laws of Ekiti State, 2021.
According to the charge sheet, “The defendants on June 12, 2024, at Ifaki Ekiti did conspire to rob one Victoria Folorunso of the cash sum of ₦147,000 and a wristwatch. As of the time of the robbery, they were armed with a gun and planks.”
Testifying before the court, the octogenarian victim recounted how she was attacked while asleep around 1 a.m.
“I was sleeping around 1am when I suddenly saw two persons in my room, one holding and pointing a gun at my forehead while the second person held a plank. They asked me to bring all the money I had in the house.
I was about lifting my mattress where I kept the money, they helped me to lift it, took the ₦100,000 I had there, and another ₦47,000 I kept in my underwear. They took my wristwatch presented to me by my children.
They also took my phone, but they returned it to me. When they threatened to shoot me, I told them I had ₦3m in my account. They instructed me to withdraw the money the following day and give it to Precious Adunola, my househelp, to deliver it to them by 11am.
They did not wear masks, they did not break the door, and they were relating freely with my househelp.
They warned me not to tell anybody, or else they would kidnap and kill me. They were calling and threatening me thereafter for taking too long to send the money to them. I later called and informed my children,” she narrated.
Prosecutor Kunle-Shina Adeyemo presented two witnesses and tendered exhibits, including the defendants’ confessional statements, a search warrant, and a wooden gun.
The defence counsel — Oluwatoyin Marcus and Mitchel Aribisala — each called one witness on behalf of their clients.
Delivering judgment, Justice Lekan Ogunmoye held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
“My earlier findings that the 3rd defendant, Adunola Precious, must have opened the door to enable the robbers to have seamless entry into the house she was sharing with the victim aptly demonstrated her own pivotal role in the plan to rob the victim.
From the believable evidence before the court, therefore, it is clear that the prosecution had been able to establish that the defendants planned and agreed to rob the victim on June 12, 2024. The charge of conspiracy and armed robbery had therefore been proved beyond a reasonable doubt against the defendants,” the judge ruled.
He consequently sentenced the three convicts to death by hanging, declaring:
“The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd defendants are to be hanged by the neck until they are dead. May God have mercy on their souls.”
Advertisement
