Man Sentenced To Death For Killing MTN Staff Who Turned Down His Proposal

Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin, on Thursday sentenced Ogundele David to death by hanging for killing a staff of MTN, Abiola Tosin Ashinwo, who turned down his marriage proposal. On 25th April 2016, David said to be a teacher at Landmark University Secondary School, Omu-Aran, was was at Tosin’s residence at Tanke where he met her mother, Abiola Ashinwo, and made effort to convince his girlfriend and mum on a marriage proposal, a plea refused on the basis that David is a married man.

According to the FIR, the refusal of marriage proposal infuriated the suspect; hence, he ran into the kitchen, picked a knife and stabbed Tosin to death on the spot. The suspect also stabbed Tosin’s mother all over her body to the state of coma, she however survived after undergoing treatment at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH). Trial judge, Justice Adebayo Yusuf who handed down the judgement on Thursday convicted Ogundele on two-count charge.

On count one, the convict committed the act by stabbing Ashiwo with the intention of causing her death, thereby committing the offence of culpable homicide punishable with death under section 229 of the Penal code law. He was also convicted for committing culpable homicide for causing the death of Ashinwo by stabbing her with a knife and thereby committing an offence punishable under section 221 of the Penal code law.

The judge held that the prosecution was able to prove the case of culpable homicide against Ogundele. The convict bagged 25 years jail term for the first count charge, and death by hanging for the second offence.

Confession of the convict quoted by the prosecutor stated; ” On 25th April 2016, I woke up and prepared for work. But to my surprise, I never knew how I found myself in Ilorin. I can never explain how it happened because I really prepared to go to work. Since I was in Ilorin, I called my legal wife on the phone that she should get dressed that I will take her to Omu-Aran that morning. I got to Tosin’s house, since her mum was around, I felt like saying hello to her.

“I got there that morning, we exchanged pleasantries, her mum said she was happy to see me and we discussed for few minutes, suddenly, the atmosphere changed and an argument began and before I knew it, I had stabbed Tosin and her mum, then, I came to my myself. It was like a scale fell off my eyes.” The prosecutor had submitted that the convict through his confessional statement convicted himself. The man then tried, unsuccessfully, to end his own life by stabbing himself in the stomach. The couple had been seen talking animatedly several hours before her body was found by residents.