A 75-year-old self-proclaimed traditional ruler of Oguntedu town in Satellite Town, Lagos, Lateef Olarinde, his son, Yusufu Lateef Olarinde, and three others were yesterday arraigned in court over alleged murder and armed robbery.

 

Others charged along with them for alleged multiple murders, armed robbery, illegal possession of fire arms and sundry crimes by the Lagos State police command are Sanni Olarinde, Kazeem Sadiku and Ayomide Babatunde.

 

Their arraignment, according to the police, followed the advice of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Mrs A.O. Adeyemi, that “a prime facie case of murder, armed robbery, grievous harm, unlawful of possession of fire arms were established against them.”

 

The offences, she said, are contrary to Sections 224297(2) (a) 245 and 298(3) of the criminal Law Cap Ch. C17, vol.3, Laws of Lagos State (2015). In the nine-count charge pressed against the defendants in suit N01269C/2020, before Justice Ighile of the Lagos High Court, Ikeja, they allegedly conspired among themselves to commit murder, armed robbery and other grievous crimes.

 

They were also accused of exhuming the body of a king of the Oguntedo Town, Oba Babatunde Olarinde, and burnt it. However, the accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charges and were ordered to be remanded in police custody.

 

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, had, on Tuesday, paraded the suspects, alleging that they were the brains behind heinous crimes, including murder, armed robbery, kidnapping and flagrant disobedience to extant laws in the Satellite Town and its environs for some time now.

 

Odumosu described them as “notorious gangs terrorizing Satellite Town. “On July 21, 2020, following a sustained surveillance, operatives of the command arrested one Lateef Olarinde, aged 72. He is alleged to be the leader of a syndicate of armed thugs, terrorizing Oguntedo area and Satellite town of Lagos.

 

“Also arrested are Yusuf Olarinde, 38; Sanni Olarinde, 37; Ayomide Babatunde Lateef, 29; and Kazeem Sadiku, a.k.a Alawori, 35. The principal suspect, who claimed to be the ruler of Oguntedo, had been mobilising armed men to unleash mayhem on indigenes of Ashaogun community over a period of time. Their attacks usually come with sporadic firing and killing of innocent persons.

 

“After the attacks, the suspects usually go into hiding. On March 18 and July 18 this year, the same set of people killed one person and injured several others. Four live cartridges were recovered from the suspects. It was also revealed that the suspects have participated in series of robbery operations in Satellite Town and its environs,” the police boss added.

 

It was further disclosed that the traditional ruler had upon his arrest attempted to compromise the Divisional Police Officer of Satellite town with N5 million, but it was turned down on principle. “No fewer than 17 witnesses who suffered wanton destruction of their properties, including a middle-aged woman, whose son was gruesomely murdered in cold blood, voluntarily testified against the father and son to police investigators,” Odumosu stated.