Priscilla Ofunre, Ado-Ekiti
The Ilotin area of Ikole-Ekiti in Ikole Local Government Area of Ekiti State have been thrown into mourning over the murder of a 35-year-old chief, Sola Fatunla, in the community.
Chief Fatunla, who was the Onibedo of Ilotin, Ikole-Ekiti, was killed and his corpse allegedly set ablaze by some assailants said to have been led by a Tiv, identified simply as Sunday.
Sunday, who was said to be into charcoal business in the community, had accused the late Chief Fatunla of snatching his wife, Tadeni.
Both Sunday and Tadeni were married with two kids before the marriage was severed.
It was gathered that after Sunday had found out that Tadeni and Chief Fatunla were merely family friends, he apologised to him, only for Sunday to have pleaded with Fatunla to assist him in using his position as a chief in Ikole-Ekiti to plead with those he claimed seized his charcoal.
While accompanying him to where his charcoal was seized, last Sunday, the Tiv allegedly connived with others to abduct Chief Fatunla and Tadeni, somewhere around Iyemero-Ekiti, Ikole Local Government Area of Ekiti State.
He was reportedly tied to a tree, strangled and his corpse allegedly set on fire.
However, Tadeni reportedly escaped from the abductors, while Sunday and his accomplices, who had fled, were caught by members of the vigilance group in Pategi area of Kwara State while trying to flee from scene of the crime.
When members of the vigilance group stopped Sunday and his gang and questioned them as to their mission in the area, especially during the lock down, it was further gathered that Chief Fatunla’s phone that Sunday kept in his pocket rang and he refused to take the call.
One of the vigilance group reportedly collected the phone and answered the call only to be told that the owner of the phone was abducted.
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The vigilance group immediately handed Sunday and others to the police in Kwara State.
As at the time of this report, Chief Fatunla’s body had been recovered and deposited in the mortuary, while Sunday and his men were being detained by the police in Ekiti State for onward movement to the police headquarters in Ado-Ekiti.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, Ekiti State Command, Sunday Abutu, who confirmed the incident said, “There was a murder case. One of the chiefs in Ikole-Ekiti was murdered in a farm. The suspects have been arrested and they will soon be paraded and charged to court.”
