Odita Sunday 
Again, Convicted Kidnappers Arrested by DSS Bag Death Sentence in Ekiti State
Third Defendant Discharged as Chief Judge Commends DSS Prosecutors
Two men arrested by the Department of State Services have been sentenced to death by an Ekiti State High Court, following their conviction for kidnapping a staff of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).
The kidnappers, Ibrahim Abubakar and Abdullahi Abubakar were convicted at the Ekiti State High Court I, Fajuyi, Ado-Ekiti, in suit number HAD/124C/2022. A third defendant, Usman Abubakar, was however discharged after the Court found insufficient evidence linking him to the abduction.
The case bordered on the abduction of Omoboade Adesina, a female National Youth Service Corps staff member in Ekiti State, on 22nd April, 2022. The two convicts were subsequently arrested and prosecuted by the DSS.
Delivering judgment, the Chief Judge of Ekiti State, Lekan Ogunmoye, sentenced two defendants to death by hanging and discharged the third defendant
Futhermore, the Chief Judge commended the diligence of DSS prosecutors for proving the case beyond reasonable doubt. He specifically highlighted the identification parade conducted by the Service and the analysis of Call Data Records during investigation as pivotal to securing the conviction.
The conviction marks yet another major courtroom victory for the Department of State Services, coming on the heels of a death sentence handed down by a Sokoto High Court against three men convicted of terrorism and cross-border arms proliferation, as well as the conviction a kidnapper in Kogi State earlier secured by the Service among others.
The string of successful prosecutions further underscores the effectiveness of the DSS’s intelligence-driven approach to investigating and prosecuting violent crimes. This also reaffirms the commitment of the Service in ensuring that perpetrators of kidnapping, terrorism, and related offences do not escape the full weight of the law.
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