Afenifere Hails Court Death Sentence On Killers Of Fasoranti’s Daughter
- It’s death by hanging for the convicts
BY SEGUN ADEBAYO – The Yoruba socio-cultural organization, Afenifere has applauded as justice served the death sentence passed on the three suspects charged with killing Mrs Funke Olakunrin, the daughter of the Afenifere leader, Chief Reuben Fasoranti.
Mrs Olakunrin was shot dead by the convicts along the Benin-Ore-Sagamu Expressway in the Ore Odigbo Local Government Area of the stateo n July 12, 2019, while returning to Lagos after visiting her father in Akure.
Reacting to the Ondo court judgment of death by hanging for the convicts, the Secretary-General of Afenifere, Sola Ebiseni, said although Olakunrin’s death could not be reversed, it was however imperative and satisfying that justice was served.
The body, which expressed the hope that all offenders would eventually be caught by the long arm of the law, said; “Though it is not able to bring back the dead, the judgment is nevertheless most welcome in several ways.
“First, the families, friends and other well meaning citizens will have a sense of relief that justice has been done; notwithstanding, these murderers have a constitutionally guaranteed right of appeal up to the apex court. Besides, it is a signal to these criminals that they are neither invincible nor above the law of the land.”
The Afenifere’s Scribe said the trial confirmed the group of persons predominantly involved in deadly attacks, noting that the assailants had been identified to come from a particular tribe as the victims always identified them by their language.
On the government’s failure to curb banditry and terrorism, Ebiseni said; “For too long, it is unfortunate that the Federal Government, which monopolises the instrument of coercion and security, has given Nigerians and the world the impression that these criminals, who parade themselves as cattle herders, are above the law of the land for which they make the lives of the citizens worse.
“The Federal Government prefers to live in denial, while the hawks around the corridor of power accuse well-meaning Nigerians of ethnic stigmatisation, a case of blaming the owner of not properly keeping his goods rather than condemning the thieves.”
Ebiseni expressed regrets that; “For whatever reason, the Buhari administration is deaf to all admonition that centralisation of the security structure in a supposed federal system, which predominant ethos is decentralisation, is a contradiction apart from the manifest incapacity of the federal security architecture to deliver on the most fundamental issue of protecting life and property.”
The High Court sitting in Akure, Ondo State had on Friday, June 10, sentenced the three men to death by hanging murdering Mrs Funke Olakunrin.
The trio, Mohammed Shehu Usman, Osagie Lawal, and Adamu Adamu, were convicted by Justice Williams Olamide for conspiracy to murder, kidnapping and armed robbery.
The fourth suspect, Auwalu Abubakar, 25, who was on trial for aiding and abetting the crime, was discharged and acquitted by the court.
They were initially arraigned before the court on eight counts bordering on murder, armed robbery and kidnapping.
After series of arguments from both the prosecution and defence counsels, the trial judge, Justice Williams Olamide found the first, second and third defendants (Muhammed Usman, Mazaje Lawal, and Adamu Adamu) guilty of involving in murder, kidnapping and armed robbery and sentenced them to death by hanging.
Justice Olamide commiserated with the family of the victims and asked the government to urgently do something about the spate of insecurity which has become the order of the day in different parts of the country.
