A clergyman with a Church in Ikoyi-Ile, Phillips Segun has been sentenced to death by hanging by an Osun State High Court sitting in Ikire .
He was sentenced by Justice Christiana Obadina for conniving with one Owolabi Adeeko, 23, to kill a final year student of Lagos State University, Favour Daley-Oladele,who was Adeeko’s girlfriend.
It would be recalled that Owolabi Adeeko had after his arrest, narrated how he used his girlfriend to prepare a meal for money ritual called “victory soup”, for himself and his mother.
Delivering the judgement on Monday, July 17th Justice Obadina also sentenced Adeeko to death by hanging for the brutal murder of the final year Sociology student after luring her to Ikire from Lagos while his mother, Bola, 46, was convicted for eating human flesh.
During the trial, the prosecution team from the Ministry of Justice led by Mrs Adekemi Bello, called nine witnesses, including the police investigating officer and tendered several exhibits before the court, while the convicts testified in their respective defence without calling any other witness.
The prosecutors told the court that Owolabi and Favour had been dating for about a month before he lured her to Ikire under the pretense that she should come visit his uncle while Owolabi, his mother and Prophet Segun had concluded plans to kill her and use her body parts for money ritual.
The prosecution team said unknown to Favour that her boyfriend had planned to kill her, she agreed to follow him to visit his Uncle. However when they got to Ikire, Favour was killed in the church after Owolabi smashed her head with a pestle and her organs used for ritual before her remain was buried in a shallow grave outside the church on December 8, 2019.
The prosecution team told the court that few weeks later, the body was exhumed by the police after arresting the suspects who confessed to the murder and they were first arraigned before the court in November 15, 2021 on two counts bordering on conspiracy and murder contrary to sections 324 and 319(1) of the Criminal Code Cap. 34 Laws of Osun State, 2002.
In her judgement, Justice Obadina said that prosecuting counsel has proven her case beyond a reasonable doubt and found Prophet Philip Segun and Owolabi Adeeko guilty for murder and conspiracy, while Bola Adeeko was convicted for eating human flesh which contrary to the Law.
In his allocutor plea, defence counsel, Adeshina Olaniyan pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy.
The presiding Judge thereby sentenced Prophet Philip and Owolabi to death by hanging for murder and 14 years imprisonment for conspiracy. She also sentenced Owolabi’s mother, Bola to two years imprisonment for eating human flesh.
