In a landmark judgment delivered by the Oyo State High Court, three individuals—Agada Solomon, Taiwo Adeniyi, and Bibisoye Kehinde—were sentenced to death by hanging on Tuesday for the murder of Col. Anthony Okeyin, the Commandant of Nigeria Army Secondary School, Apata, Ibadan.
The tragic event occurred on December 12, 2016, when Col. Okeyin was brutally murdered at his residence, a case that has remained in the courts since then.
Justice Ezekiel Ajayi, who presided over the case, also sentenced the trio to 14 years imprisonment each for charges related to conspiracy and armed robbery.
In his ruling, Justice Ajayi stated: “The first, second, and third defendants gave confessional statements while the phone of the deceased commandant was found with the first defendant and are therefore convicted accordingly.”
Alongside the death sentence, the three convicts were also found guilty of conspiracy, armed robbery, and other related charges. The judge noted the gravity of the offense, stating, “The defendants allegedly caused the death of Okeyin, aged 52, by breaking his skull while armed with offensive weapons and robbed him of his Samsung X4 phone and N45,000 cash.”
The case, which began in 2016, saw six individuals initially arraigned. However, three others—Ewere Andrew, Udobata Oruza-Uzie, and Ephraim Obi—were discharged and acquitted. Justice Ajayi made it clear that these individuals were not directly involved in the crime.
“Established by evidence, therefore, Ewere Andrew, Udobata Oruza-Uzie, and Ephraim Obi are not guilty of armed robbery and are thereby discharged and acquitted,” the judge affirmed.
According to the prosecuting counsel, K. K. Oloso, the incident occurred early in the morning of December 12, 2016. The convicts conspired to murder Col. Okeyin at his quarters while robbing him of personal belongings.
The crime was described as being committed with “offensive weapons” and involved severe physical violence that led to the Commandant’s death.
In their defense, the convicts’ lawyer, F.O. Awonusi, in his allocutus, pleaded for leniency, asking the court to temper justice with mercy.
However, given the confessional statements and the evidence presented, including the discovery of the deceased’s phone in the possession of one of the convicts, the judge ruled that the punishment would stand.
The prosecuting counsel further explained that the crime violated several provisions under both state and federal law, including Section 316 of the Criminal Code and sections of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act.
