An Ekiti State High Court in the Ado Ekiti Division has sentenced four men to life imprisonment for the kidnapping of a 75-year-old woman in Ikere Ekiti. The convicted individuals, Adeoye Sunday, Adewusi Dare, Bamigboye Damilola, and Ogunlayi Seun, were also handed additional five-year sentences for conspiracy.
The incident occurred on September 14, 2017, when the defendants abducted Madam Florence Popoola from her home in Ikere Ekiti. She was held captive in a forested area between Eyio and Awo-Ekiti for four days before being released following a ransom payment of ₦1.5 million.
During the trial, the Director of Public Prosecutions for Ekiti State, Julius Ajibare, presented four witnesses and eight exhibits to support the charges. The defendants, represented by their lawyers, Chris Omokhafe and Sunday Ochai, testified in their defense but did not call additional witnesses.
Justice Lekan Ogunmoye, presiding over the case, concluded that the prosecution had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the first four defendants were guilty of conspiracy to kidnap and kidnapping. As a result, they were sentenced to life imprisonment for the kidnapping and five years for conspiracy to kidnap. However, the fifth defendant, Ojo Tope, was acquitted of all charges.
The court dismissed the charges of conspiracy to commit armed robbery and armed robbery against the four convicted defendants.
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