A 42-year-old man, Stephen Omoniyi, has been sentenced to death by hanging for killing a traditional ruler in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
He was convicted and sentenced by Justice Olukayode Ogundana of the Ekiti State High Court after he was arraigned on one count charge of murder.
Omoniyi on August, 2018 at Odo Oro Ekiti in Ikole Ekiti killed 80-year-old Oba Gbadebo Ibitoye Olowoselu ll, the Onise of Odo-Oro Ekiti, in a desperate bid to take over the throne.
Confessing to the crime in 2018, Ademola told the police that, “The crown didn’t belong to Oba Ogunsakin because the town had last year declared the seat vacant following the death of our Oba.
My family nominated me to take over only for him to resurface again and said he remained the Oba. My family nominated me in December 2017, and since then, I have been trying to take over. That day when I got to the palace, it was the late Oba (Ogunsakin) that first attacked me and I attacked him back which led to his death.”
A chief in the community who testified before the court said, “We were at the palace on that day for Onise in Council meeting, around 7 am before the commencement of the meeting, Omoniyi Ademola Stephen entered the palace and sat on Kabiyesi’s seat but the Chiefs frowned at his action and drove him away.
After the meeting, late Onise in the company of his male clerk were trekking back to the main palace, Ademola came out of his hiding and attacked Kabiyesi with a knife on the road and stabbed him to death. Before that day he has been parading himself as the king of the town.”
Delivering his verdict, Justice Ogundana dispelled the notion that the defendant is insane and consequently pronounced the death verdict.
“The defendant is hereby sentenced to death and shall be hanged until he breathes his last. May the good Lord have mercy upon his soul,” he pronounced.
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