For daring to wreck irreparable damage to the life of labourer in a Lagos State community, a motor boy has been served with the ultimate punishment.
A motor boy, Kabiru Lasisi, was on Thursday sentenced to death by a Lagos High Court for killing a labourer, Abdulrazak Haruna, in October 2013.
According to The Nation, the convict stabbed Haruna fatally in the neck and watched him bled to death.
Justice Raliatu Adebiyi in her judgement found Lasisi guilty of a one count charge of murder and sentenced him to death.
The state prosecutor, Mrs. O.A. Olugasa, told the court that Lasisi accompanied his boss, one Kehinde Kuye, a bus driver to a company, Twins Fajah Nigeria Limited located in Ajah to deliver cement to a customer when the incident took place.
According to her, the deceased confronted the convict for obstructing the labourers offloading cement with his vehicle and an argument ensued between the duo.
The prosecutor said: “During the argument, Lasisi, in Yoruba language, threatened to kill the deceased.
“While other labourers were trying to separate them, Lasisi who was armed with a small knife stabbed the deceased on the right side of the neck, leaving a deep cut from which blood was gushing out.
“The deceased died before getting to the hospital.
“Lasisi tried to flee from the scene but was apprehended by an angry mob of labourers who almost lynched him.
“He was saved by the manager of the company who tied him up in his office before the police arrived.”
Lasisi claimed that he did not stab the deceased, adding that the deceased was injured by an iron rod at the back of the truck.
The prosecutor called four witnesses and tendered the weapon used in committing the crime – a small knife which was still caked in dried blood – as evidence.
Lasisi, through his counsel, Mrs. Y.A Ajayi, from the Office of the Public Defender, pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy.
Ajayi said the convict is a first time offender who is deeply remorseful about his actions.
“My Lord the defendant is a first time offender who is remorseful about his actions. He is a young man who can still be of benefit to the society. During the cause of the trial he lost his parents,” she said.
Justice Adebiyi, however, said she found no merit in Lasisi’s plea for mercy and sentenced him to death.
“The evidence against the defendant is overwhelming as the victim died from the stab wounds.
“The defendant knew what he was doing when he brought out a knife, knowing fully well that it can cause grievous body harm. His utterance, ‘I will kill you’ also showed that he knew what he was doing.
“The defendant, Kabiru Lasisi is hereby sentenced to death. May God have mercy on your soul,“ the judge ruled
