Two siblings have been jailed for 15 months each by an Ekiti State Chief Magistrate Court, Ado Ekiti District for assaulting their brother’s widow and malicious damage.
The siblings, Sunday Arowosoki, 25, and Gbolaga Arowosoki, 23 accused the widow, Mrs. Rachael Arowosoki, of witchcraft thereby mobilising some family members to attack her with dangerous weapons and vandalising her shop.
The defendants conspired at 10 a.m. on April 17, 2022 at Ayegunle Ekiti in Ijero Local Government Area of Ekiti State.
The court upheld that they executed their plan to “commit felony, assault and malicious damage, unlawfully on the widow of their late brother, Mrs. Rachael Arowosoki”.
The charge stated that the defendants “unlawfully damaged two shops, property of Mrs. Rachael Arowosoki.”
This is contrary to and punishable under sections 421, 185, and 354 (1)(8) of the Criminal Law of Ekiti State, 2021.
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The Police Prosecutor, Inspector Elijah Adejare, called three witnesses and tendered the victim’s statement, the defendants’ statement, hospital receipts and admission card, among others, as exhibits.
The defendants, who spoke in their own defence through their counsel, called three witnesses.
In his judgement, the Magistrate, Olatomiwa Daramola, found the defendants guilty and convicted them accordingly in counts 1 (assault) and 3 (unlawful damage) of the charge.
He said, “In count one, the defendants are sentenced to three months imprisonment each or fine of N10,000; in count two (malicious damage) the defendants are discharged and acquitted; and in count three, the defendants are sentenced to one year imprisonment each or fine of N10,000 in lieu of imprisonment.
“The terms are to run concurrently while the fine is consecutively,” Daramola pronounced.
Earlier, the victim, in her statement to the police, said, “I am a trader, I got married to the late Jimoh Arowosoki over 45 years ago. We have six children. After the death of my husband, his siblings accused me of witchcraft and responsibility for his death. The case was reported to the monarch, who dismissed the allegation as frivolous and unsubstantiated.
“Thereafter, the siblings mobilised other members of the family, they were armed with cutlasses, sticks and other dangerous weapons with the intention of killing me, but I escaped and ran to the palace. When their mission could not be accomplished, they went to my shop erected in front of my house and destroyed it,” she stated.