By Ayodele Popoola

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Another suspect believed to be part of the mob who lynched a 25-year-old driver, Temitope Olorunfemi has been remanded by an Akure Chief Magistrates’ Court.

The suspect, Seyi Adeniyi, 20, was arrested by the police for being in possession of the deceased’s two Iphone handsets, which believed to have been stolen at the scene where Temitope was clubbed to death at Ijoka,Akure.

The Hope Metro gathered that the suspect who resides at Abusoro area in Akure, later put up the phones for sale.

The brother of the deceased one Tosin Olorunfemi,  when he heard about the phones went ahead to buy the said phone and identified the iphone 6 as one of  his late brother’s prized  phones, which later led to the arrest of the accused.

The accused was arraigned on four-count charge of conspiracy, murder, malicious damage and stealing

According to the prosecution, the defendant and others still at large committed the offence on April 10, 2023 at about 9.00pm,  opposite Odopo Town Hall, along Ijoka Road, Akure.

The prosecutor, Inspector Nelson Akintimehin,  informed the court that the accused conspired to commit felony and unlawful murder of the deceased, Temitope.

The accused was alleged to have stolen the deceased’s Iphone 6s and Iphone 7 handsets which went missing, after the mob murdered the deceased in cold blood with sticks, stones and other offensive weapons.

According to the charge, the offences contravene Sections 324, 316(1) 390(9) and 451(6)(J) of the Criminals Code, Cap 37 Vol. 2 Laws of Ondo State.

The court did not take the plea of the defendant for lack of jurisdiction.

The prosecutor, through a written application urged the court to remand the defendant at the Olokuta Correctional Centre pending the issuance of advice from the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions(DPP).

The defence counsel, V. Umoru in his reply told the court that his client found the two phones on the ground  some hours after the killing of the driver, and picked them, adding that he could only be charged for stealing not murder nor malicious damage.

The defendant in his statement read in the court denied his involvement in the killing but confessed to picking the two phones along the scene of the crime, four hours after he heard that some mob killed the deceased.

” At the road side, i saw the two phones iphone 7 and 6 on the floor with the belief that i will later know the owner.

” I did not know the phones belong to the deceased.

” I was not there when the deceased was beaten to death. I visited the scene at 2pm when coming from my grandmother’s place, I know I have made a mistake for picking the phones” the accused said.

Chief Magistrate Musa Al-Yunus, ordered the remand of the defendent at the correctional custody in Ondo for legal advice and adjourned the case till August 8, 2023.

Two out of the five suspects  earlier arraigned were remanded while three others were granted bail by the court.