BY TIMOTHY AGBOR
It was an emotion-laden moment inside the courtroom of Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin on Tuesday when judgement was delivered over the rape and murder case of a 24-year-old undergraduate of the University of Ilorin, Miss. Blessing Omowumi Olajide, by some persons.
Three of the eight accused persons alleged to have raped and murdered the student on June 2, 2021, were convicted and sentenced to death by hanging.
The convicts had been arraigned by the Kwara State Government in a suit marked: KWS/33c/c/2021 and having 11-count charge bordering on armed robbery, illegal possession of firearms and rape.
Delivering the judgement, Justice Ibrahim Adebayo Yusuf of the Kwara State High Court, betrayed emotions and shed tears for about two minutes while reading the 165-page judgement and recounting how the deceased was raped to death.
Justice Yusuf found the three convicts guilty of culpable homicide punishable with death, conspiracy to commit robbery and conspiracy to murder.
Also, the judgement got almost the whole courtroom attendants shedding tears while being read by the judge.
The judge held that the gang had the intention of theft and rape without the intention to kill, however, added that their act led to homicide.
Speaking on the judgement, the prosecution counsel and former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Salman Jawondo, who started the case as Attorney General of Kwara State, concluded it as a private legal practitioner on pro bono service.
Jawondo had resigned to contest in the APC primaries for the 2023 general elections.
Speaking with journalists on the summary of the judgement after the court session, the prosecutor said he was happy that justice was later dispensed on the matter.
“The first, second and third defendants who are the main culprits were found guilty of culpable homicide punishable with death, conspiracy to commit robbery and conspiracy to murder. They were accordingly sentenced to death. That’s the maximum. There’s no discretion for the court to exercise by virtue of provision of the armed robbery Act, it is death. So also by virtue of section 221 of the penal code, it’s a death sentence for culpable homicide. So, they were accordingly sentenced to death.
“Although, the third defendant, who was also convicted of rape was sentenced to life imprisonment, but it’s neither here nor there.
When somebody is condemned, the life imprisonment does not ameliorate anything,” he added.