A Kwara State High Court has sentenced a self-proclaimed Islamic cleric, Abdulrahman Bello, to death by hanging for killing his Facebook lover, 24-year-old Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal.
Lawal was a final-year student of the Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin. She was murdered on February 13, 2025, after Bello invited her to his home at Offa garage in Ilorin.
Justice Hannah Ajayi delivered the judgement on Thursday in Ilorin after four months of trial. Bello was found guilty of murder, while four other men tried alongside him were discharged and acquitted.
The cleared co-defendants are Ahmed Abdulwasiu, 41, Suleiman Muyideen, 28, Jamiu Uthman, 29, and Abdulrahmon Jamiu, 31.
Bello confessed during the trial that he killed Lawal for money rituals and claimed he needed her hands for the process.
In one of his statements, he told the court he had sex with the victim multiple times before strangling her. He also admitted to cutting her body apart afterward.
At another point, Bello changed his story, saying she died from an asthma attack and that he dismembered the body out of fear.
Lawal had gone out that day to attend a naming ceremony before Bello invited her to his house. She never returned.
Justice Ajayi, in her ruling, said the court found Bello’s confession and the evidence presented against him strong enough to convict him. He was sentenced to death by hanging.
