Court remands 3 over alleged armed robbery, murder of Yayi’s aide

On Tuesday, the Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court ordered the remand of three men in the Kirikiri maximum correction centre, Lagos, for 30 days over the alleged robbery and murder of one Sanni Adeniyi.

Fred Okunnu, 43; Lucky Idudu, 33; and Segun Adedigba, 26, whose addresses were not mentioned in court, are standing trial for the alleged robbery and murder of Adeniyi, an aide to Sen. Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi.

The Chief Magistrate, Mrs. T.R.A. Oladele, who did not take the defendants’ plea for want of jurisdiction, ordered their remand in custody for 30 days, pending advice from the office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).

Oladele, thereafter, adjourned the matter till Jan. 9, 2024, for further hearing.

Earlier, the Prosecution Counsel, Victor Eurada, informed the court that the case was one of conspiracy to kill, murder, and armed robbery.

He said there was an affidavit in support of the remand form sworn to by the Investigating Police Officer (IPO), ASP Adekunle Adeshina.

The prosecution counsel advised that the defendants be remanded and the case file sent to the office of the DPP for onward review and proper advice.

He said that the defendants had, on Aug. 5, from 1.30 p.m. to 2.00 p.m. at New Garage, Berger bus stop, on the Lagos/Ibadan motorway, conspired to murder and commit armed robbery.

“The defendants and others at large unlawfully and intentionally shot and killed Mr. Sanni Adeniyi with an English brownie pistol, a locally made Beretta pistol, and a knife,” he said.

Eurada further stated that the defendants stole the deceased’s unregistered Toyota Camry saloon car, a 2017 model, black in colour, valued at N12 million, which was being driven by him at the time he was flagged down.

“The second defendant, Lucky Idudu, with the intent to be taken as a member of the Nigerian Armed Forces, wore a military camouflage T-shirt, jungle hat, and boots and flagged down the deceased to rob him.

“The defendants, during interrogation, said they had in their possession at the time of the robbery an English brownie pistol with three 7.65mm live ammunition and a locally-made Beretta pistol with six live cartridges, which they could not give a satisfactory account of,” the prosecutor said.

According to him, the offences contravene Section 28(a)(b) of the Robbery and Firearms Act, 2004.

He said that they also contravened Sections 77(a)(b), 222(1)(a)(b), and (2)(a)(b), 233, 297(1)(2)(a)(b), and 299 of the Criminal Law of Lagos, 2015.

Supreme News reports that Section 233 stipulates 14 years imprisonment for anyone found guilty of conspiracy to kill any person, whether such a person is in the state or elsewhere.