A High Court in Osogbo on Friday ordered that a hotel staff member, Adedeji Adesola, charged with the alleged murder of a student of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Timothy Adegoke, be remanded in a correctional centre pending bail application.
The trial judge, Justice Adepele Ojo, gave the order that the accused staff be remanded in Ilesa Correctional Centre.
Adesola is charged alongside the owner of Hilton Hotel and Resort Centre, Ile-Ife, Rahmon Adedoyin, Magdalene Chiefuna, Adeniyi Aderogba, Oluwale Lawrence, Oyetunde Kazeem and Adebayo Kunle.
They were charged in connection with the mysterious death of Adegoke, a Masters degree student of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.
They pleaded not guilty.
The judge adjourned the matter until Monday for ruling in the bail application filed by the defence counsel.
Earlier, Counsel to Adesola, Okon Edet-Ita, prayed the court to grant his client bail in the most liberal terms, citing Sections 34, 35 and 36 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
But the Prosecution Counsel, M.O. Omosun, presenting a 10 paragraph counter-affidavit with a written address filed on March 3 and sworn to by ASP Idoku John, as a legal evidence, prayed the court to refuse the defendant bail.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Justice Ojo had on March 3 ordered the remand of all the defendants, while the seventh defendant’s bail application was left out.
The defendants were charged with 11 counts of murder, attempted felony, conspiracy and unlawful interference with a corpse and intent to destroy evidence as well as conspiracy in administering extrajudicial oath.
The defendants were previously arraigned before a Federal High Court in Abuja before they were transferred to Osun State for the trial.