How High Chief Elerewe was killed

….Killers of Elerewe of Owo Kingdom   arrested

….5m paid to the assailants

….He was shot with  charmed nail inserted in AK 47

……Prime suspect on the run

 

At  last the people of Owo are now relieved  when the police arrested some  suspects  who killed the Elerewe of Owo Kingdom   .The suspects were arrested last Wednesday in Owo. The suspected assassins who participated in the plan and those who pulled the trigger  are now confessing like a tormented witch to their crime at the Police Station, Akure . The ring leader bolted away while his  wife went into hiding.

KILLERS OF ELEREWE  ARRESTED

Six  men    including a father and his son (names withheld) suspected  to  have masterminded the killing of the late Chief  Ilori Tunde the Elerewe of Owo Kingdom   were arrested from their various places on Wednesday evening after a tip off.  Some  were picked up from their hideouts while others were picked from their homes . However, the ring leader  (names withheld) was said to have being pursued by the police but escaped. It was gathered that the  prime  suspect  was said to have paid the sum of  five million naira to the assailants to kill  the  late Chief .One of the suspects who scaled the fence of his house was given the beaten of his life by the Police officer.

This  arrest came  three months after  the late Chief was brutally murdered  when he and  some people were returning from  a fact finding mission. The deceased was accompanied to the farmland by the Land Resolution Committee inaugurated by the Olowo of Owo, Oba Ajibade Ogunoye III, to look into the matter when he was shot at close range in his vehicle while returning to the township. It  was a shock to the community that those who claimed to be innocent at first when they were arrested were the same set of people eventually arrested and now confessing.

According to a reliable source the suspects were firstly arrested immediately after the incident as they were  the prime suspects but were released later by the Police , their release did  not please the slain Chief’s family as they were convinced that  the suspects did it.

Investigation revealed that the prime suspect did all he could do to deceive people that he was innocent  and was  never part of the killing as he went to church to do a thanksgiving for being ‘cleared’  of the killing while he along with others boasted about .

Two weeks ago the suspects were asked to report themselves for another  interrogation but they declined saying they had once been interrogated while their lawyer   ran to the Ministry of Justice to fight for them .  Today the family  members of the late Chief and the public are vindicated as the truth has come out. The wind has blown and we have seen the romp of the fowl.

WHAT LED TO THEIR ARREST

Information gathered that one of the suspects  raped a secondary school   young girl   ( names withheld) and the case was reported to the police. When the police went to  arrest  the suspect about three AK 47 riffles were found in his house . The suspect ( names withheld)  confessed  that the riffles  were kept in his custody and that one of the riffles was used to kill the late Elerewe. He began to  confess like a tormented witch as he named  his accomplices and the man who sent them , our source revealed.

He confessed to the killing and said he planned with others  to execute  it  along with some others who are now at large. The suspect  revealed  that   that they inserted some charmed   six inches nails  into  the riffle  and aimed at the late Chief’s  eyes .He added that they had to do   juju  or charms on the nails  since the late Chief was assumed to be powerful and ordinary gun cannot penetrate into his body.

An AK 47 riffle 

 

 

six inches nail

PRIME SUSPECT ON THE RUN

According to a reliable source  the prime and principal suspect ( names withheld) escaped  arrest by the police while investigation reveals that his wife and children have absconded.

As at the time of filing this report investigation revealed that some of the suspects arrested are in the police custody, Akure confessing the roles they played in the killing. While   the natives are jubilating that the culprits were eventually caught .The Police is yet to make an official statement on the issue.

It is exactly three months when  a notable Owo High Chief Ilori Tunde the  Elerewe of Owo was killed .Now new facts are emerging .

Owo First Bank Manager should be invited  for interrogation – Barrister Idowu Femi Falana 

He was killed  over  Chieftaincy  title and Family  property   – Doris ,Wife of late Chief

The older sister of the  late Elerewe of Owo Kingdom has vowed that the remains of his dead brother would not be buried until the killers are identified and brought to book. She made this revelation last week during a telephone interview .

Owo Community in Ondo state was thrown into confusion  three months ago  when the news of  the assassination   of  High Chief Elerewe  was broken. He was said to have been shot at a close range over a dispute a farmland  along Owo- Ute by unknown  gunmen. The  late Chief High  Ilori Tunde who was the Elerewe of Owo Kingdom was said to be  returning from  a fact -finding mission on a land which was said to  belonged to him .Chief Ilori was reportedly ambushed by the masked gunmen while returning from his farmland along Ute road, Owo, which some other parties are laying claim to.

The deceased was accompanied to the farmland by the Land Resolution Committee inaugurated by the Olowo of Owo, Oba Ajibade Ogunoye III, to look into the matter when he was shot at close range in his vehicle while returning to the township.

According to information   the  late Chief  had approached the Olowo for a peaceful resolution of the disputed over the farmland.
Reports had it that the High Chief and members of the committee were attacked on the farm land which led to the death of Ilori. Palace sources said a distress call was received from the committee who reportedly requested for reinforcement to ward off the attack.
During the attack, the masked men targeted the Elerewe and was said to have been shot on the head while others ran for their lives.

OSENI ORONBATO’S ACCOUNT

………They shot the Chief in the eye 

 …….. 11 bullets were extracted  from my body

………. Owo people know the man behind the assassination

An eye witness account Oseni Oronbato  (53)said  he was in the same vehicle with the late Chief with other four  occupants when the tragic incident happened. He said ” My name is Oseni Oronbato , a drycleaner .On that fateful Wednesday , we went to the farmland over the dispute on the farmland on the instruction of  Olowo of Owo   Oba Ajibade Gbadegesin Ogunoye III . On our  way  back home  I saw two men who were part of the opposition party  on a motorbike who overtook our vehicle . We were six  in our vehicle with   a  village head  Atelegi Alamuren   of   Ogain he is the Village head of the Community .    we wanted to drop at his Farm Camp  .Not less than 15 minutes on our way when   we heard a sound of a burst tire from our vehicle thinking and   we stopped  to have a look at the tire when one of the Masked men   came closer and  shot at a close range into Elerewe’s eyes and that went into his brain. They fired  shots from behind  and these shots entered my head thank God it didn’t enter my brain, but all the pellets are in my scalp while one went into my back and  my into  hand. It is God  that rescued me from that place. I didn’t see the faces of the assailants because they were all  masked”.

He continued ” one of us who was sitting with Chief Elerewe in the front quickly opened  the door and escaped , yet  these assailants  went after him .But one of us who escaped again ran back , opened the door and seeing that I had not died , dragged me out and we started running to escape  . But already the Elerewe had  died instantly . No rescue , nobody could even rescue him. While I was bleeding  the wo of us ran for three miles   to Amurin Agayin  Farm Camp. It was from here that one of us took his phone and called his ( Elerewe) wife to brief her what happened and they called Amotekun, the State Security Outfit. The Amotekun  arrived  to rescue us and they went to pick up Elerewe’s body .They removed 11 pellets from my body, then seven from my head, they removed two bullets from my back, one dug a hole in my chest as X-ray revealed . I was taken to Akure that night where the X-ray was done on my hands ,chest and other parts of my body. The hospital said  could not remove the bullets  but  I was  given drugs to relieve my pains .I spent four days at Federal Medical Centre, Owo from there I was taken to Iyere- Owo where the trado-medical  removed the bullets. But I am still having pains .It was cartridges that they  shot at me  but I suspected that Elerewe  was shot with AK 47 and they aimed at his eye, and his eye  gouged out as the bullet penetrated into his brain. I spent four days at the hospital. I spent up to 300,000 naira.

DORIS ELEREWE’S CRIES OUT

….Land is a smokescreen 

…All Owo people know the man behind the killing

….Who will take care of my children now?

Doris Elerewe  who was the wife of the late Chief was weeping profusely during the interview, she said the problem started from the chieftaincy title.  Before and since my husband was conferred the title of the chieftaincy  in 2018 his opponent ( names withheld ) has been attacking him. At a time he cooked up  stories that he was an armed robber and a killer .He took my husband to Abuja where he was unlawfully detained for weeks. The said suspect  sold the family’s property and farmland and emptied the family’s treasury but my late husband kept his cool. He threatened my late husband  several times that he should relinquish the tittle or else he would kill him. He had collected over 10years tenant rent from the land the First Bank  have their building on . When my late husband approached the Bank and gave them quit notice and the  suspect was informed  and he quickly ran to the Bank .The Owo First Bank Manager should be summoned to come and tell what he know about all these illegal transactions ”.She added” now who will take cater of my children?”

ADEOLA OLAYINKA

We will not bury Elerewe until the killers are found

……We all know who killed him

…..Let the Federal government come in

Mrs. Adeola Olayinka ( Nee Elerewe) who was the older sister to the late Chief said his younger  brother  had not known peace since his enthronement to the family’s chieftaincy title, Elerewe . According to her,  the genesis of the story was from the chieftaincy tittle  the late Elerewe  was holding , the property, and the Farmland that the late High Chief’s grandfather, Olakunori Elerewe left behind . Olayinka said First Bank   in Owo   that rented the family land was given a quit notice by the late Elerewe  as their rent was almost due .But the prime suspect who had cunningly gone behind to collect 10years rent from them was jittery and had to do all these in order to stop the late Chief from exposing him the more. She said ”the Bank Manager should be summoned  and should be called to give evidences of the transactions as a tenant on the Elerewe’s land, the police should   investigate this  thoroughly .I was called that evening that my brother had been shot and when I got to Owo I was hearing all manners of stories. I was told that the first shot was on the tires while the late chief thought it was his tire that burst , as he came out to look at the tire they fired him at a  close range. The sight of the corpse was too gory to look at . I learnt  they used AK 47 on him. We have gone spiritual , called  his spirit, we have gone traditionally and he told us who killed him but we want all those who had hands in it to be arrested and investigated. They must not go scot free. The late Chief gave   First Bank  located on the family’s ground a quit notice , and some secrets leaked out , that was part of the reasons why he was killed. He also tried to take back the family’s farm back , he won and was murdered in cold blood over all this .The culprits should be  brought to book”

KEHINDE DARAMOLE ( NEE OLATERU OLAGBEGI)

……..He was killed over chieftaincy and property

……….Inspector General of Police should come in

Mrs. Kehinde Daramola ( Nee Olagbegi) said her late Cousin Elerewe was unjustly killed by assassins for no just reason, she implored the state government and Federal Government to do the needful and make sure justice is served. ”All Owo people  know who killed Chief Elerewe. We want justice. If a man of such caliber could be killed and nothing happens then nobody is free. The assassins were paid to kill this man for no just cause, it is bad. The Inspector General  of Police should wade into the matter and treat it urgently because those indicted are trying to use their political power to sweep it under the carpet. This is one dead too many ”, she lamented .

 

BARRISTER OLUFEMI IDOWU FALANA

Barrister Olufemi Idowu Falana  who is the deputy Head of the campaign for Justice for Chief Ilori Elerewe said the principal suspect (names withheld)was interrogated and  the Police rode in his  (suspect) Hilux  truck to the station and was brought back home.  Falana said ”The Police freed  the two principal suspects(names withheld) on health ground while the duo were heard boasting that they have connections with the political gladiators in the state, they  are  now walking  freely  in the town. I want the government to wade into it , call the First Bank Manager in Owo, investigate the Farmland story and the chieftaincy tussle you will see the whole thing .I want the case to be transferred to Abuja . We want justice at all costs. We are pleading to the Federal Government and the IG to wade into the matter”.

A day after the incident the prime suspect house and store were about to be set ablaze by the angry Owo youths but were stopped by the town’s leaders who appeased to them to keep calm and not to take law into their hands.

The remains of the late Elerewe is still at  the mortuary as no one knows when he would be buried.