Bella Ifasola
KWARA – Five suspects involved in a robbery case in Nigeria’s Kwara State have been sentenced to death by hanging.
The verdict was delivered on Thursday afternoon by a presiding judge at the Kwara State High Court, Justice Haleema Salman, who held that the court was satisfied that the prosecution had successfully proved its case against the defendants.
The defendants were convicted on three count charges: illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, conspiracy to commit armed robbery and conspiracy to commit culpable homicide punishable by death.
The convicted suspects are Ayoade Akinnibosun, Azeez Salahudeen, Niyi Ogundiran, Ibikunle Ogunleye, and Adeola Abraham.
The court allowed the convicts to take the plea of allocutus (Plea of mercy) but eventually sentenced all of them to death by hanging.
“The five of you shall be hanged on your neck until you are dead to serve as a lesson to others,” the presiding judge stated in her ruling.
In April 2018, armed robbers stormed the ancient town of Offa in the state and robbed at least five commercial banks, according to local reports.
Many people, including nine policemen, were killed in the incident which involved the stealing of an undisclosed sum of money from the banks.