YAHAYA IBRAHIM
A 16-year-old boy, Adeola Okanlawon on Tuesday gave a vivid account of how his father was killed by their neighbour over disagreement on smoke coming out from a generator.
Okanlanwo who is a prosecution witness in an ongoing trial of murder case told an Igbosere High Court on Lagos Island that the defendant, Ibrahim Tijani chopped his late father’s leg and left hand with a cutlass, he picked from a food vendor.
According to the teenager when the defendant was cutting his father with the cutlass he pleaded with him not to kill his father, but he refused to listen to him.
Okanlawon was led in evidence by the Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Mr Adeniji Kazeem.
It would be recalled that the state had on January 21, 2016, charged the defendant with a one-count charge of murder.
The defendant who resides in an uncompleted building with the deceased at Okun in Ajah area of Lagos had pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The prosecutor who is the Attorney General of Lagos had alleged that the defendant committed the offence on February 8, 2015, at about 2:30 am..
According to him, Tijani 31, unlawful killed one Bashorun Okanlawon, 57, with a cutlass by cutting him on his leg and left hand.
Kazeem, said that the offence committed is punishable under Section 221 of the criminal law of Lagos State 2011.
At the continuation of the trial on Tuesday, the teenager who testified before Justice Adedayo Akintoye, told the court that the defendant fought with his father, which led to his death.
He narrated to the court that his late father had called on the defendant to complain about the smoke that was coming out of his generator into his room, adding that his father asked him to reposition the generator set as the smoke was entering his room, but the defendant refused to heed to his advise.
The teenager was cross examined by the defendant’s counsel, Onome Akpeneye.
Another prosecution witness, Sergeant David Abu, the Investigating Police Officer, IPO, who also testified before the court said that on the day of the incident, the defendant at about 2:13pm came to report a case of assault at the Agbongon Police Division, and 10 minutes later the lifeless body of the deceased was brought into the police Station on a Tricycle.
” In my investigation review, on February 8, 2015, the defendant and the deceased person were living in the same uncompleted building at Okun Ajah, the deceased complained to the defendant to adjust his generator as the smoke from the generator was entering his room,” the IPO said.
Abu also testified that the deceased went to one Alfa who owns a block industry to complain to him, adding that the cleric sent for the defendant and then settled the fight between them.
According to him, while they were on their way home from the Alfa’s place, the defendant picked a cutlass from a food vendor’s place and started chasing the deceased until he fell on a moulded block and the defendant started cutting him with the cutlass.
The third witness, Inspector John Babalola who said the case was transferred to SCIID Panti Yaba on February 10, also confirmed the incident.
He identified the cutlass recovered from the scene of crime which the defendant allegedly used to kill the deceased and it was admitted in evidence as exhibit B.