Hafsoh Lawal: Appeal Court affirms Bello’s Death Sentence

By Ola Taiwo

The Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin has affirmed the death sentence imposed on Abdulrahman Bello for the murder of Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal, a student of the Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin.

In a unanimous judgment delivered by a panel led by Justice Gabriel Omoniyi Kolawole, the appellate court dismissed Bello’s appeal in its entirety, holding that there was no basis to interfere with the decision of the trial court.

The court held that the prosecution successfully established the offences of murder and unlawful possession of human parts against the appellant beyond reasonable doubt.

The appellate court said that the trial court properly assessed the evidence presented during the proceedings before convicting Bello and sentencing him to death by hanging.

“The prosecution proved the charges of murder and unlawful possession of human parts against the appellant beyond reasonable doubt,” the panel ruled.

The court while stating that the lower court rightly evaluated the facts and evidence before arriving at its verdict held that the appeal lacked merit.

The appellate court consequently upheld both Bello’s conviction and the death sentence earlier imposed on him.

The prosecution team was led by The Kwara State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Senior Ibrahim Sulyman, which also include Chief State Counsel, Issa Zakari, and Assistant Chief State Counsel, B.L. Abdulsalam of the the  state Ministry of Justice.