WOLE BALOGUN, Ado Ekiti
A Magistrate’s Court in Igede-Ekiti, Ekiti West Local Government Area of Ekiti State on Wednesday sentenced a 70-year-old man, Adeyeye Olorunyomi, and his two sons to six months imprisonment for conspiring to commit felony.
The grandpa and his sons, Akindele Olorunyomi (30) and Ojo Olorunyomi (36) were arraigned on a six-count charge of forcibly entering a farm belonging to one Oluwadare Olowookere and Adekunle Olowookere.
According to the police prosecutor, Sgt. Olubu Apata, the offence was committed in the town between February 25 and 27, 2019. Apata said that the convicts stole three timbers valued at N100,000 belonging to the complainants.
The prosecutor added that the convicts also obstructed one Insp. Aliyu Umar and four other police officers from effecting their arrest after a complaint was lodged against them at the Igede Ekiti police station.
He said that the convicts also conduct themselves in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace by marking 28 timber wood with a cutlass on the farmland of the complainants.
Apata further said that the convicts did unlawfully damage the economic trees such as cocoa trees, kola nut, banana and cocoa yam trees belonging to the complainants.
The convicts pleaded not guilty to all the charges and the matter proceeded to trial.
The prosecutor noted that the offences contravened Section 516, 81, 390,
356 (2), 249(d) and 451 of the Criminal Code, Laws of Ekiti State,
2012.
He added that the convicts claimed that the land was given to the complainants by their great grandfather but the complainants countered that the land had been in their possession for over 100 years.
The Magistrate, Mrs. Adesola Omotoso, sentence each convict on count one, two and three to six-month imprisonment, while in count four, five and six, they were discharged.
Omotoso, therefore, sentence the convicts to six-month imprisonment to run concurrently without an option of fine.