TONGUES are now wagging in Igede-Ekiti, head quarters of Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area of Ekiti State following the discovery of the body of a man in his farm in the community last week Thursday.
The body of 69-year-old, Mr. Abiodun Adeleye, popularly known as Olododo was found in his farm by a search party that sources said included the youth of the community and men of the Ekiti State police command, the day after he left his home for the farm.
A family source told Sunday Tribune that Olododo of Irona area of the town had gone to his farm on Wednesday and never returned until his body was found the day after.
The source, who does not want to be named, said the man never stayed late in the farm and his lateness on the day he was murdered sparked suspicion as, according to the source, there had been a threat to his life by another member of the community.
It alleged that the deceased had once been beaten to a pulp before by a youth (names withheld) in the community, who, it said, claimed that Olododo was occupying his farmland, adding that it took the intervention of well-meaning individuals, who retrieved the cutlass from the youth, to save the day.
It added that the incident was reported to the police in Igede, pointing out that while the matter was still being tackled, the same suspect went back to the farm and murdered Olododo.
The suspect, according to the family member, had been arrested by the police, pointing out that the matter was now at the headquarters of the state police command in Ado-Ekiti.
The killing of Olododo in late March 2012 adds to the ugly litany the people of the town said has been a common occurrence since 2004, with the last year’s murder of Mrs. Taiwo Oluwole, also a farm in Igede throwing the community into serious tension.
For about one week early last year, Igede-Ekiti was taken over by the youth who used the mysterious death of Mrs. Taiwo Oluwole, wife of the Reverend John Oluwole, pastor in charge of Zion Baptist Church in the town, as a decoy to demand an explanation from their monarch, Oba James Aladesuru, his cabinet members, chiefs and other leaders of the town what they said was “strange happenings in the town.”
The angry youths barricaded the ever-busy Ado-Igede-Aramoko road, sacked traders in the market and literally quarantined Oba Aladesuru and others in the palace and remained on the streets in angry protest for about a week in 2011.
Also, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and other Christian bodies in Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area staged a peaceful protest then over the reported killings, with the spokesperson of group, Forum of Ministers and CAN, Reverend Michael Ige, accusing the monarch and leaders of the town of doing nothing about the murders.
CAN in the area had written a letter to its leadership in the state, signed by Apostle Peter Adegbami and copied the state Commissioner of Police, the state Criminal Investigations Department (SCID) and other security agencies in the state, listed the people that had been killed in the community “and nothing came out of it,” adding that “incessant murder is now very rampant and uncontrollable in Igede Ekiti.”
CAN in the letter dated February 1, 2011, and entitled “Save our Souls and Peaceful Rally,” had said: “Mrs. Olamide Ibri Akindele was killed in Ilamoye Quarters in 2005; Mrs. Awawu Omoya was killed in Odo Uri Street in 2007; Mrs. Ogboro Rachael (Iya Aina) was killed at Irona Street in 2009; Mrs. Oluwabusuyi Tayo was killed at Ilamoye Street in 2010; Mrs. Apanisile was also killed at Ilamoye Street in 2010 and Mrs. Oluwole Taiwo was killed in Odo Uri in 2011.”
The Public Relations Officer of the state police command, Mr. Mohammed Jimoh, while confirming the latest murder, said “yes the incident actually happened and the police are investigating it.”
Jimoh, a Superintendent of Police, also confirmed that one suspect had been arrested in connection with the murder but declined to give the name.
The PPRO also hinted that the matter had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for further investigation, adding that the suspect would soon be charged to court.
