Justice Monisola Abodunde of an Ekiti State High Court has sentenced 27-year-old Babalola Olatomide to life imprisonment for attempted murder and armed robbery.
Abodunke delivered the judgement after finding the suspect guilty of the offences.
The charge sheet read that Olatomide on January 23, 2019 at Falegan Estate, Ado Ekiti, robbed one Ajayi Habeeb Bolakale of his phone and laptop.
At the time of the robbery, he was armed with an offensive weapon, a double-barrel pistol, and also shot the victim with the weapon.
According to the prosecutor, the offences contravene Section 1 (2)(a) of the Robbery and Firearms (special provisions) Act, Cap R11, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and Section 320 of the Criminal Code Law, Cap 16, Laws of Ekiti State of Nigeria, 2012.
In his testimony before the court, the victim said, “I came to school in Ado Ekiti from Ogun State. I was with my friend, eating in our room around 9:00 pm, suddenly two boys entered our room, they asked us, ‘Who among you is bearing Tosin?’
“We said none of us is bearing the name, thereafter, they demanded our phones and laptops, but we refused to give them, one of them now at large picked my phone and laptop, I tried to hold him, in the process, one of them who held a gun shot me in the leg with double barrel pistol, two times, the one who picked my phone and laptop escaped with it but the one who shot me was overpowered and arrested with the gun.
“I was rushed to the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti for medical attention and treatment,” he concluded.
To prove his case, the prosecutor, Julius Ajibare, called five witnesses and tendered one locally made double barrel pistol, one axe, and statements of the defendant among others as exhibits.
The defendant spoke in his own defence through his counsel, Christopher Omokhafe, and called no witnesses.
Delivering his judgment, Justice Abodunde said the evidence before her establishes a conspiracy between the defendant and his friends now at large.
”For conspiracy (count 1) he is sentenced to imprisonment of 7 years, for the offence of attempted murder (count 2), he is sentenced to imprisonment for life. Sentences are to run concurrently,” the judge ruled.
