Seven individuals suspected of committing various crimes were paraded by the Kwara State Police Command on Friday.
Among them was a suspect accused of being engaged in the cruel murder of Anthony Kayode Balogun, a hotelier by suspected cultists on August 8, 2024, at his hotel in the Olulande district of Ilorin.
At a press conference in Ilorin on Friday, Commissioner of Police Victor Olaiya revealed that a suspect, Abolarin Samuel Idowu, aka Sam Caro, 37, was apprehended at his hideout near a Conoil filling station in Ita Alamu, Ilorin, three weeks after the hotelier’s murder.
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“A search conducted at the time of his arrest led to the recovery of a locally fabricated gun and three live cartridges.
“The suspect admitted to being a member of the notorious Eiye secret cult, initiated in 2011 by an individual named “Otumba,” who remains at large,” the commissioner stated.
He further disclosed: “Investigation revealed that Abolarin Samuel Idowu, along with his accomplices, Alowonle, aka Aloo, and Samuel, aka Sam Febee-Kay, was responsible for the murder of Anthony Kayode Balogun.
“The killing was reportedly a revenge mission for a 2022 cult anniversary celebration during which the deceased allegedly ordered the killing of an Eiye Confraternity member named Abbey.”
He stated that following the suspect’s confession, additional searches at various criminal hideouts resulted in the discovery of several exhibits, including two locally-made shotguns, one cut-to-size locally-made gun, one multi-purpose battle axe, eight live cartridges, one locally-made sword, one cutlass, and two bottles of an unknown liquid suspected to be hard drugs.
Olaiya stated that during the attempt to apprehend further suspects and recover additional evidence on August 18 and 19, 2024, the police tactical teams encountered resistance, resulting in grievous bodily damage to one of the police officers.
Adebayo Joshua Happiness, Adebayo Adeniyi, Adeoye Adeola, Bulus Peter, and two females, Adeniyi Bukola and Lawal Aminat, were among six other suspects arrested in connection with the alleged murder of Awesu Mojisola, a 21-year-old graduating student at Kwara State College of Health Technology in Offa.
According to the police commissioner, the man was slain in a hotel in Ilorin, the state’s capital.
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“The incident occurred on August 9, 2024, when Awesu Mojisola received a phone call from one Kolawole Timileyin, a female student of the same institution
“Timileyin relayed a message from Adebayo Joshua Happiness, an expelled final year student of Summit University, Offa, Kwara State, who invited Awesu Mojisola to attend a purported sign-out party at Whitefield Hotel, Ilorin, with a promise of N15,000. Mojisola accepted the invitation and left Offa for Ilorin later in the day.
“Upon arrival in Ilorin, Mojisola communicated with her friends via phone, expressing discomfort and concern as there appeared to be no sign-out party. Instead, she reported being alone in a hotel room with Adebayo Joshua Happiness, who was reportedly smoking cannabis.
“Subsequently, her phone became unreachable and her whereabouts unknown,” Olaiya added.
He said: “Acting swiftly on the report, an investigation by officers of the command led to the arrest of Adebayo Joshua Happiness. Preliminary findings revealed that Adebayo had deliberately lured Awesu Mojisola to Ilorin under false pretences, booking a hotel room at around 1800 hours with no intention of hosting a party.
“Further investigation uncovered that at about 2345 hours, on the same day, Adebayo Joshua Happiness, booked an additional room at the same hotel for another female, possibly as cover up for his premeditated actions.
“In the early hours of August 10, 2024, Adebayo Joshua Happiness, brutally murdered Awesu Mojisola and abandoned her lifeless body in the hotel room, secured the room and fled with Mojisola’s iPhone and a sum of N15,000 stolen from the deceased. He then returned to Offa and concealed the stolen phone in his hostel wardrobe.”
The Commissioner of Police also stated that while the suspect’s parents attempted to tamper with evidence in the case, following their son’s detention, hotel personnel discovered the deceased’s body in the hotel room and unlawfully disposed of it in the garbage dump.
He stated that the individuals had been captured and charged with criminal conspiracy and causing the removal of evidence.
