A pastor and his accomplice, who pleaded guilty to killing a seven-year-old boy for ritual purposes, have been sentenced to death by hanging.
According to pulse.ng, an Ikeja Special Offences Court condemned the duo, one Pastor Erinmole Adetokunbo and one Adedoyin Oyekanmi, to death on Tuesday, August 9, 2022.
They had initially pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder and murder, but changed it to guilty on Monday, hence their subsequent sentencing accordingly.
The Lagos State government, which prosecuted the convicts, said that they committed the offences on June 7, 2017, at No. 6, Oke Oniburokun St., Odokekere, Ikorodu.
The court heard that the convicts cut off the child’s head and buried it on a `church’ altar and threw the body into a canal.
In his ruling, Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo expressed sadness about how the convicts conspired to kill the little boy, destroying his bright future and inflicting a painful loss on his family.
“The defendants have committed a heinous crime and deserve no mercy.
“They have cruelly and intentionally killed a seven-year-old boy. This deprived him and his family of a bright destiny.
“Section 222 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State imposes death penalty for premeditated murder, and I have no hesitation in imposing the said punishment.
” I hereby sentence Adedoyin Oyekanmi and Erinwole Adetokunbo to death for killing Kazeem Rafiu.
“May God have mercy on your souls,” the judge ruled, as quoted by pulse.ng.
It is reported that the convicts were arraigned on Oct. 30, 2017, but the trial started in earnest in 2021, and the prosecution team called several witnesses to help prove their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
