100 Year Old Land Grabber Dragged To Court In Ibadan

100 Year Old Land Grabber Dragged To Court In Ibadan

At an Iyaganku Magistrates’ Court in Ibadan, a 100-year-old man, Oladepo Ogunlade, and 61-year-old Musiliyu Ogundiran, were arraigned on Friday on charges of land grabbing and destruction of economic trees.

The two defendants were accused of committing the offences in 2021 at Lawani village in Ibadan, Oyo State. They were charged with conspiracy, land grabbing, malicious damage, threatening violence, and conduct likely to cause a breach of peace.

The Prosecution Counsel, Mr Philip Amusan, told the court that the defendants and others forcefully took 25 acres of land worth N50 million belonging to Mr Wasiu Lawani. The defendants were also accused of destroying some economic trees on the land, such as cocoa, palm, and coconut trees, worth N800,000 while threatening violence.

According to Amusan, the defendants conducted themselves in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace by destroying the economic trees with a bulldozer and without justification. The police alleged that the offence contravened the provisions of sections 516, 451 and 249(d) of the Criminal laws of Oyo State, 2000, and Sections 6, 4 and 7(1) of the Oyo State Real Properties Protection Law, 2016. The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The Magistrate, Mrs O. A. Akande, granted bail to the defendants in the sum of N5 million each and two sureties each in like sum. The case was adjourned until June 14 for a hearing.