Nigerian Prince sentenced to death for killing former boss

A Nigerian prince has been sentenced to death by hanging for strangling a politician to death so he could steal her business.

Prince Adewale Oyekan, 50, son of the late Adeyinka Oyekan II, the 23rd Oba of Lagos, murdered businesswoman and politician Alhaja Sikirat Ekun in 2012.

The prince, who managed Ms Ekun's restaurant in the Nigerian capital, recruited her former servant Lateef Balogun, 27, paying him £12.59 to conspire with him.

The pair strangled the 62-year-old before dumping her body down a 1,000ft well at her home and covered it with a generator and gas cylinder, local media reported.

After her murder they took over her businesses and property, including a bus which was flogged for £360.

Balogun had been employed by Ms Ekun to care for her elderly father but had been sacked following a dispute.

The prince had returned to Nigeria in 2003 following the death of his father, who reigned from 1965 until his death as the ceremonial sovereign of Lagos.

The Oba, a pacifist and peacemaker throughout his reign, was a qualified pharmacist and had served in the Third Field Ambulance 81st West Africa Division in Burma during WWII.

The prince had been studying architecture in the States when his father died. His mother had been living in the US until her death in 2001.

The court heard that Ms Ekun had helped the prince on his return, offering him a job at the restaurant and allowing him to stay at her home.

On October 17, 2012, the prince and his accomplice Balogun strangled Ms Ekun at her home in the Ojodu neighbourhood, on the outskirts of Lagos.

When her family inquired as to her whereabouts the high court heard that the prince sent them a text message claiming Ms Ekun had travelled to Abuja for a religious festival.

Two months later an extensive search of her home by well diggers and firefighters uncovered her corpse.

Their trial began at the Ikeja High Court in April 2015. Both men denied knowing each other, claiming they had first met at the police station.

Prince Adewale told the court that he had met Ms Ekun at a People's Democratic Party rally after returning from his architecture studies in the United States.

Before sentence was passed on Monday, the murderers' defence counsel Mr O. C. Onwumerie declined to plead for clemency.

'I will be leaving sentencing to the hands of the court,' the lawyer said.

Justice Raliatu Adebiyi, during the two-hour hearing, said: 'The circumstantial evidence was strong and cogent; the act of the defendants in killing the deceased was intentional and premeditated.

'The court finds that the prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt the offences of conspiracy and murder and are accordingly found guilty of the two-count charge.'

She outlined that the sentence for murder was death, telling the court: 'The first and second defendants are hereby sentenced on each of counts one and two, to death by hanging. May God, the giver of life, have mercy on your souls.'

Daily Mail

Netflix debuts Nigeria’s ‘Crazy, Lovely, Cool’ TV sitcom

The popular streaming platform, Netflix has acquired a Nigerian TV drama series titled “Crazy, Lovely, Cool” (CLC), adding to its expanding roster of Nollywood content.

The series is a joint production between The Nollywood Factory, owned by award-winning director Obi Emelonye and Trace TV.

The film was shot in 2017 inside the picturesque campus of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria. It explores the interesting activities of university undergraduates and their lecturers in a typical Nigerian university.

The dynamic hour-long drama series is filled with many familiar faces like Adesua Etomi-Wellington, Uru Eke, Zynell Zuh, Anthony Monjaro, and Enyinna Nwigwe.

With over two decades of experience in filmmaking, Emelonye is renowned for telling Nigerian stories with a universal appeal. He has his imprint on some of Nollywood’s most successful productions, including the much-awaited biopic, ‘Badamasi: Portrait of a General’ which tells the story of General Ibrahim Babangida.

PMNews

Nigeria university lecturer sacked over sexual harassment

The University of Abuja in the Nigerian capital has dismissed one of its lecturers over sexual harassment.

A female student had alleged that the lecturer, a professor, had demanded sex in exchange for marks.

The university said it had acted after reviewing the report of a panel set up to investigate the allegations.

In October, the BBC's Africa Eye investigative programme exposed sexual misconduct by lecturers at two top West African universities.

The revelations in the "Sex for grades" documentary led to the suspension of some lecturers at both the University of Lagos in Nigeria and the University of Ghana.

A separate BBC Africa Eye investigation in December uncovered an illegal network that lured women to India from Africa, where they were then forced into sex work to satisfy the demands of the many African men living in Delhi.


BBC

Video - Conversation with chief Nike Okundaye Africa’s queen of textile

African artists who have made it big on the global stage are few and far between. Among them is Chief Nike Davies Okundaye; a Nigerian professional textile artist and painter. At 68 years of age, Chief Nike as she’s fondly referred to, is an icon in her own right. With a career spanning 5 decades, the textile queen’s art pieces grace some of the most prestigious art galleries in the world and her fabrics are celebrated as contemporary jewels of traditional African art. Today, Chief Nike is on another mission: To pass on generations of knowledge and skill to the future custodians of Nigerian cultural heritage. I sat down with Chief Nike at the Nike Art Gallery in Lagos to explore her unrivalled passion for art, her mastery in the business of textiles and the Chief’s quest for cultural preservation in Africa.

Kamaru Usman breaks Covington as he retains UFC welterweight title

Nigerian-American mixed martial artist Kamaru Usman retained his UFC welterweight title in Las Vegas after a hard-fought win against US challenger Colby Covington on Sunday, December 15, knocking him out in the final stages of the fifth round.

The Nigerian, 32, broke Covington’s jaw with a huge punch in the third round.

But it wasn’t an easy victory for Usman as he and his challenger engaged in an all-out war for nearly five full rounds before the Nigerian Nightmare finished off his opponent in style.

After an early exchange of blows and kicks, the fight took a turn in favour of the champion in the third round after catching Covington with a strong blow that broke his jaw.

But the challenger relentlessly continued to fight on and looked like he could secure a win based on the judges’ decision. Covington before the fight had received a video message from the Trump family as they urged him to win the belt.

However, Usman had other plans as he dropped Covington twice in the final minute, then finished the fight with hammer fists on the mat.

He was cheered on by fellow Nigerian UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya as they both celebrated his victory together.

The victory means Usman has successfully defended his welterweight title for the first time in his career.

He won the title in Las Vegas when he defeated defending champion Tyron Woodley after five rounds to become the new champion.

Adeolu Johnson

New Telegraph