Sentenced 27-year-old Oluwaseun Oladapo, to death by hanging for murdering a Lagos based human rights lawyer, Mr Kunle Fadipe and his mother-in-law, Mrs Cecilia Owolabi.
In her judgement, justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye found Oladapo guilty on a five-count charge of murder, armed robbery and assault occasioning harm pressed against him by the state.
Handing down her sentence, Justice said: “On count one, you Oluwaseun Oladapo, is to be hung by the neck till you are dead. “On count three, you Oluwaseun Oladapo, is to be hung by the neck till you are dead. “On count four, you Oluwaseun Oladapo is sentenced to three years in prison. “On count five, you Oluwaseun Oladapo is sentenced to three years in prison. “The terms of imprisonment of counts three, four and five is that they should run concurrently. This is the judgment of the court.”
Earlier before the sentence was passed, counsel to the convict, Mr Worer Obuagbaka pleaded for mercy on behalf of the convict. “I ask this honourable court to give him a second chance, he is a young man who is still useful to society, I urge this honourable court to please temper justice with mercy,” Obuagbaka said.
Responding, prosecuting counsel, Mrs O.A Olugasa said: “The deceased was not given a second chance, his children were not given a second chance to have their father with them. “I urge the court to give the harshest punishment to the convict so that justice can be seen to be done.”
Oladapo, allegedly murdered the lawyer at 3am on July 4, 2014 at his residence located at No. 1 Harmony Estate, Ifako-Ijaiye, Iju, Lagos. The prosecution was led by Mr Adeniji Kazeem, the Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice and Mrs Idowu Alakija, the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).
Oladapo, was also charged with the murder of Mrs Cecelia Owolabi, the mother-in-law to the late Fadipe, but the charge of murder was commuted to assault occasioning harm by the court. Explaining the reason for why the murder charge of Owolabi was rejected, Justice Ipaye said: “The prosecution did not prove a direct link between the actions of the defendant and the death of Madam Cecelia Owolabi.
“He is however, found guilty of the assault occasioning harm of Madam Cecelia Owolabi.”
During the trial, the wife of the late lawyer, Mrs Kemi Fadipe, in her testimony gave a graphic details of how the lawyer was murdered. Kemi, a school proprietress said: “My husband came in late from the office at 10pm and he was preparing for a flight to Abuja the following day, we both had retired to our bedroom.
“Our home is a five – bedroom duplex and there was no electricity that night, the home was well lit because the generator was on.
“At 11.45pm, power was restored and my son Folahanmi went to put off the generator, a few minutes after he left, he came running upstairs screaming for help.
“He had a stab wound on his head and was being pursued by the defendant who was armed with a knife.
“The commotion alerted my husband and I rushed to the anti-room upstairs where we saw the defendant and Folahanmi.
“The defendant was saying that someone had to die today and demanded N500,000, threatening us that members of his gang had surrounded the house.
“We knelt down to plead with him and my husband instructed me to get a white envelope containing cash from the jacket of his suit.
“When the envelope was handed over to the defendant, he was dissatisfied and demanded for laptops and phones and we told him those items were downstairs.
“He for no reason, lunged at Folahanmi with a knife and my husband stepped in to save him and he was stabbed in his neck and his chest,” she explained to the court.
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