by Akintomiwa Agbaje

Five men were arraigned before an Abuja High Court in Apo yesterday, for allegedly kidnapping and murdering Mr. Sylvester Emefiele, an electrical and electronics technologist attached to the Transformation Office, Corporate Planning and Strategy Division of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Emefiele was kidnapped and murdered on September 23 while on a trip from Lagos  to Abuja.

The men arraigned on a seven-count charge of conspiracy, kidnapping, murder and armed robbery were Timothy Abidemi Lekan (30), Akinlade Taiwo (41), Banjo Olaniyi (20), Saidi Babatunde (47) and Saliu Afeez (20).

The Nation reports:

Taiwo, Lekan, Babatunde and others at large allegedly hypnotised the deceased, using fetish charms “provided” by Babatunde.

They allegedly dispossessed him of his possessions, including a laptop, three Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) cards, a camera, a mobile telephone set and N183,000.

They allegedly tied him up with a rope in a bush at Giri, Gwagwalada Area Council, and “killed” him by “hitting” him with a sledge hammer.

Olaniyi and Afeez were accused of receiving the deceased’s stolen phone from Taiwo and Lekan.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The prosecutor, Oloye Torugbene, objected to an attempt by a defence lawyer, Olaniyi Oyinloye, to move the bail application for Olaniyi.

Torugbene said he was served with the bail application the day before and needed time to respond.

Justice O. A. Musa fixed January 30 for hearing of the bail applications and remanded the accused in Kuje prison.