Court Sentences Islamic Cleric to Death for Ritual Murder of Final-Year Student Yetunde

The Kwara State High Court in Ilorin has sentenced an Islamic cleric, Abdulrahman Mohad, also known as Mohammed A. Bello, to death for the ritual killing of Lawal Hafsoh Yetunde, a final-year student of the Kwara State College of Education.

Justice Hannah Ajayi delivered the judgment on Thursday morning, condemning Mohad for the gruesome murder that took place on February 10, 2025.

According to court proceedings, Hafsoh mysteriously went missing after receiving a phone call while attending a naming ceremony in Ilorin. A day later, her disappearance was reported to police at the Oja Oba Station.

Following a police investigation that traced the last known call on Hafsoh’s phone to Mohad, he was arrested and subsequently charged alongside four other suspects: Ahmed Abulwasiu (41), an Islamic scholar from Adualere; Sulaiman Muhydeen (28), a Neo Life business operator from Amilegbe; Jamiu Uthman (29), a phone repairer from Adualere; and AbdulRahman Jamiu (31), a farmer from Elemere, Malete.

The police First Information Report (FIR) initially stated that all five men confessed to belonging to the same occult group and admitted to killing Hafsoh for ritual purposes. However, during the trial, a video obtained by SaharaReporters showed Mohad taking full responsibility for the crime, declaring, “I am the only one that killed her. These other people were not there.”

Justice Ajayi ruled that the prosecution failed to prove the offence of conspiracy or direct involvement of the other four accused. They were therefore discharged and acquitted.

Source: Sahara Reporters