According to a report by PUNCH on 14th July 2026, the Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin had affirmed the death sentence given to Abdulrahman Bello, a self-proclaimed Islamic cleric.
The court confirmed that Bello was guilty of murdering his lover, Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal, a final-year student at Kwara State College of Education. The appellate court made this decision after reviewing the case and the evidence presented during the trial.
The judgment was delivered unanimously by a three-member panel led by Justice Gabriel Omoniyi Kolawole. The court dismissed Bello’s appeal, concluding that the prosecution had proven beyond reasonable doubt that he committed the murder. It also found that Bello was unlawfully in possession of human body parts.
The appellate court upheld the previous judgment from the Kwara State High Court. That court had sentenced Bello to death by hanging and added a ten-year jail term for unlawful possession of human parts.
The court noted that the trial court had properly assessed all the evidence. It pointed out that the prosecution had established Bello’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
The Kwara State Ministry of Justice, led by the Attorney General, expressed satisfaction with the court’s decision. They described the judgment as a significant milestone for criminal justice in the state.
Lastly, the ministry stated that Bello still had the right to appeal the decision further under the law. The appellate judgment followed a previous verdict from July 2025, in which Justice Hannah Ajayi sentenced Bello to death. The trial court described the crime as extremely wicked and premeditated……See More
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