The Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced Adakole Ogbodo to d3ath for m8rdering a man identified simply as Bolaji.
Justice Modupe Nicol-Clay on Tuesday convicted and sentenced Ogbodo to d3ath for the m8rder of Bolaji following a violent altercation over sachet water.
The Lagos State Government, through its prosecution team led by former Director of Public Prosecutions, Dr Babajide Martins, and Mrs Titilayo Olanrewaju-Daud, had arraigned Ogbodo for allegedly k!lling the deceased with an iron object and a knife at 66B Mosley Road, Ikoyi, Lagos, on January 31, 2022.
The charge, dated June 20, 2022, stated that the offence contravened Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, which prescribes d3ath as punishment for m3rder.
During the trial, the prosecution called three witnesses, including a carpenter, Chigozie Paul, and two police officers, Inspector Damian Ogunye and Inspector Adeniyi Shola.
Paul told the court that he saw Ogbodo beating the deceased with a scaffolding pipe during a fight that erupted after both men had been eating together and disagreed over sachet water.
He testified that the deceased fell after being struck and that Ogbodo pursued him across the road, continuing the assault.
He said he later saw the deceased’s lifeless body on Mosley Road the following morning, with Ogbodo sitting a short distance away.
He further told the court that when police officers arrived and asked Ogbodo if he knew the deceased, he answered in the affirmative.
When asked who k!lled him, he reportedly responded, “Him,” referring to himself.
Under cross-examination, however, Paul admitted that he did not witness the actual moment of d3ath.
Inspector Ogunye testified that the police responded to a murder report, visited the scene, documented the body and evacuated it to the Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba.
He added that Ogbodo was arrested at the scene and that a knife was recovered from him.
Inspector Shola told the court that the case was later transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, for further investigation, noting that some people present at the scene declined to make statements.
The defence argued that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt, citing alleged contradictions in the witnesses’ testimonies, the absence of an eyewitness to the k!lling and the lack of an autopsy report establishing the cause of death.
Justice Nicol-Clay, however, rejected the arguments, holding that the absence of direct eyewitness evidence was not fatal where circumstantial evidence was cogent and compelling.
“It is permissible to rely on surrounding circumstances to identify the perpetrator of a crime in the absence of eyewitnesses,” the judge held, adding that the evidence before the court was “overwhelming.”
The court found that Ogbodo was seen assaulting the deceased and was later found near his body, forming a chain of evidence that the judge held pointed irresistibly to his guilt.
The judge also dismissed the argument that the absence of medical evidence weakened the prosecution’s case, holding that there was sufficient evidence linking Ogbodo’s unlawful act to the d3ath.
On intent, the court held that striking the deceased on the head with a scaffolding pipe demonstrated knowledge that such an act could result in d3ath or grievous harm.
The court consequently found Ogbodo guilty of m8rder.
In sentencing, Justice Nicol-Clay noted that the offence carried a mandatory d3ath penalty under Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, leaving the court with no discretion.
Although the defence pleaded for leniency, arguing that Ogbodo had been in custody since 2022 and lacked family support, the judge held that the law must take its course.
Ogbodo was accordingly sentenced to d3ath.