29 November 2023 :

A middle-aged man, Joseph Abayomi, was sentenced to death on November 27, 2023 in Ondo State for hacking his neighbor, Thomas Oluwole, to death.
Abayomi was convicted by an Ondo State High Court sitting in Akure after being found guilty of killing Oluwole in the state capital’s Ijoka neighborhood in 2021.
The convict was said to have argued with the deceased over well water contamination.
Abayomi was accused of attacking the deceased, a 63-year-old bricklayer, with a machete at his neck and other parts of his body during the heated altercation.
He was later apprehended by police when a report was made, and he was charged with murder in court.
The court charge was brought using information lodged at the court by an Assistant Chief Legal Officer from the Ondo State Ministry of Justice, Omotola Ologun.
The convict was believed to have claimed to be “insane” when committing the crime during the trials.
The court however found Abayomi guilty of the offense after hearing arguments from both the prosecuting and defense attorneys.
The trial judge, Justice O.S Kuteyi, stated in his decision that Abayomi cannot be absolved of responsibility for Oluwole’s death as a result of his acts.
According to Kuteyi, who listened to the defense counsel, the defendant intentionally attacked the deceased by hitting him on the head with a cutlass.
While agreeing that the prosecution had established Abayomi’s murder case beyond a reasonable doubt, the judge sentenced him to death by hanging.