The Ekiti State High Court sitting in Ado Ekiti has sentenced a 34-year-old man, Stephen Adamu, to death by hanging for killing his blood brother, David Adamu.
The judgment, delivered by Justice Adekunle Adeleye on Friday, brought an end to a gruesome case of fratricide that shocked the Atikankan area of Ado Ekiti in 2024.
Stephen Adamu was first arraigned before the court on January 31, 2025, on a one-count charge of murder, contrary to Section 234 of the Criminal Law of Ekiti State, 2021.
According to the charge, the convict murdered his brother, David Adamu, on September 29, 2024, during a violent altercation.
An eyewitness, Selfa Vengrim, Chairman of the Langtan tribe in Ado Ekiti, testified that the incident occurred when Stephen was engaged in a fight with his girlfriend, identified as Julianah.
“Atikankan area of Ado Ekiti is part of my coverage area,” Vengrim told the court. “I received a call that some of my town people were fighting, and when I got there, I saw Stephen Adamu attacking his girlfriend. She had already been wounded and was taken to the hospital. The deceased, David Adamu, tried to intervene to separate them, but Stephen brought out a knife and stabbed him on the neck.”
Vengrim said that after realizing his brother was gasping for breath, Stephen attempted to flee but was pursued and apprehended by community members, who later handed him over to the police. David was confirmed dead at the scene, and his body was taken to the mortuary by the police.
To prove the case, the prosecution counsel, Funmi Bello, called six witnesses and tendered several exhibits, including the defendant’s statement, attestation form, and the knife used in the crime.
The defense counsel, S.K. Idowu, did not call any witness on behalf of the accused.
In his ruling, Justice Adeleye held that the evidence presented by the prosecution established that the killing was intentional.
“From the entire circumstances of this case, Stephen Adamu deliberately stabbed David Adamu on the neck. The necessary inference is that the defendant intended to kill the deceased,” the judge said.
“I accept the evidence of the prosecution witnesses to have established the necessary elements of the offence of murder and proved beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant murdered the deceased, Adamu David. I find the defendant guilty as charged.”
Justice Adeleye thereafter sentenced the convict to death by hanging, declaring:
“The defendant, Stephen Adamu, is hereby sentenced to death by hanging until he be dead. May God have mercy on your soul.”
