A self-styled traditional ruler and spiritual leader of the Ayetoro community in the oil-rich Ilaje local government area of the state, Ondo State, Oluwambe Ojagbohunmi, have been sentenced to two years in prison for breach of peace.
Ojagbohunmi was sentenced on Monday by an Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure, the state capital.
Ojagbohunmi and five others were found guilty of orchestrating the violence that erupted in the coastal community on January 11, 2018, by presiding Judge, Justice David Kolawole.
The six people, who include Victor Akinluwa, Isaac Ikuyelorimi, Lawrence Lemamu, George Eyekole, and Segun Okenla, were found guilty of the three 10-count charges preferred against them by the offices of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice.
The convicts are; Ojagbohumi, Akinluwa, Ikuyelorimi, Lemamu, Eyekole, and Okenla.
They were accused of conspiring to commit a felony to wit: malicious property damage, which is in contravention of Section 451 of the Criminal Code, Cap 37, Vol. 1, Laws of Ondo State, 2006.
They were also accused of robbing Temitope Olowodasa of a sum of N270,000.00 in his house, and at the time of the robbery, they were armed with offensive weapons, namely guns and cutlasses, contrary to Section 1(2)(a) and (b) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, Cap R11, Vol. 14, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
The convicts and others at large were also accused of robbing Igoli Akinlana of four Industrial Sewing Machines valued at N800,000, four Plasma TVs valued at N448,000.00 and a cash sum of N635,000.00 in his house At the time of the robbery, they were armed with firearms and offensive weapons such as guns, cutlasses, axes and others
One of the convicts, Eyekole, was accused of attempting to murder one Olu Obolo by shooting him with a gun, contrary to Section 320 of the Criminal Code, Cap. 37, Vol. 1, Laws of Ondo State, 2006.
The prosecuting counsel, Mr Babatunde Falodun, told the court that Ojagbohunmi and others were brought before the court over violence that happened in Ayetoro in January 2018, among other charges.
All the suspects pleaded not guilty to all the charges preferred against them, but the court found them guilty and convicted them of malicious damage to property, contrary to Section 37 of the Criminal Code and the laws of the state.
While Justice Kolawole discharged and acquitted the convicts of armed robbery conspiracy, he gave an option of fine for counts six, seven and eight that related to malicious damage to property
He, however, sentenced Eyekole to five years in prison with hard labour for the attempted murder of Obolo in the Ayetoro community.
The convicts were to pay N300,000 each as a value for the damaged properties and N50,000 as an option of a fine for the offences committed by the convicts.
