Hotel Staff Sentenced To Death For Killing Employer And Manager

An Ikeja High Court condemned a 30-year-old hotel worker, Jeffrey Ehizojie, to death by hanging for killing his boss, Olusola Olusoga, and the hotel manager, Tunji Omikunle, in Lagos

Justice Oyindamola Ogala ruled on Tuesday, July 11, 2023, that the prosecution had proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Mrs Ogala convicted Ehizojie of assaulting and strangling the Managing Director of Etsahol Hotel and Suites in Ojodu-Berger, Lagos.

She stated that the prosecution’s case was based on the convict’s confessional testimony as well as circumstantial evidence.

According to her, the court carefully analyzed the retracted defence statement (which was entered as evidence) in which Ehizojie indicated that one of the hotel personnel, Henry, advised him that the hotel’s owner kept a lot of money at home.

Mrs Ogala said: “The defendant, in his confessional statement, said that Olusoga treated her workers badly so they planned to tie her and collect her money.

“Confessional statement is the best evidence to ground conviction and as held in several cases, it can be relied upon solely where voluntary.

“It is curious that the defendant who was privy to the state of affairs in the hotel told the court that he was shocked when the police informed him of the death of his boss and the manager when he was arrested at Port Harcourt.

“There is no doubt that the defendant was present at the premises of the scene of the crime as confirmed by him in his evidence in chief and exhibits before the court.”

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The court, according to the judge, carefully analyzed the defendant’s testimony, particularly his description of how he departed the hotel grounds on Jan. 25, 2019, and his implausible explanation about why he did not return to the hotel after the incident or report to the police station.

She claimed that the convict had no explanation for why he fled to Port Harcourt the next day till his capture.

The circumstantial evidence against the condemned, she claimed, was unequivocal, positive, and irrefutably pointed to his guilt.

She said: “The court believes that the defendant indeed wrote the confessional statement (exhibit PW2a-c) and his feeble attempt to retract same was to exonerate himself from the commission of the deadly act.

“After careful consideration of the facts in this case, I hereby find the defendant guilty of the two-count charge against him.

“The sentencing of the court upon you Jeffrey Ehizogie is that you be hanged by the neck until you be dead.”

According to the state prosecution, Ehizogie and others who are still at large, strangled UK returnee Olusoga with a rope.

“They also submitted that the convict strangled and beat Omikunle to death.”

He then took a key from his pocket, opened the door to Olusola’s flat, and strangled her to death.

The prosecution called four witnesses against the convict: hotel staff David Nkwor, ASP Chris Akpanomo, ASP Malik Aliyu, and Harrison Bruce.

The offence was in violation of Section 223 of the Lagos State Criminal Law of 2015.