The long arm of the law has caught up with two suspects as the Lagos Police on Wednesday marched Shafi Fatai and Yusuf Ismaila before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court over the alleged killing of a man in Ajah.
Fatai, 40, and Ismaila, 35, are staring down a four-count charge bordering on conspiracy, murder, and alleged affiliation with an unlawful society.
According to the prosecutor, Supol Josephine Ikhayere, the duo did not act alone. She told the court that one Hammed Akaribi, who is still on the run, joined them in carrying out the alleged crime on April 18, 2023, at Muba in the Ajah area.
Ikhayere alleged that the accused snuffed life out of Sheriff Salami in a brutal attack, shooting him in the stomach before striking his head with an axe — a chilling sequence that painted a grim picture before the court.
In a further twist, the prosecutor revealed that the first defendant, Fatai, was allegedly a member of the outlawed Black Axe (Aiye) Confraternity, a group long under the radar of law enforcement.
She noted that the alleged offences run afoul of Sections 222(1), (2) and 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, alongside Section 2(3) of the Unlawful Societies and Cultism (Prohibition) Law of Lagos State, 2021.
The defendants’ pleas were not taken at this stage.
Presiding Magistrate, Mr L.A. Owolabi, ordered that the accused be remanded while awaiting legal advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), effectively putting the matter on ice for now.
The case has been adjourned until April 7 for mention, as the wheels of justice continue to grind slowly but surely.
