Court remands two for killing friend over bags of rice
By Felix Kuyinu
A Magistrate’s Court sitting in Yaba, Lagos has indicted two friends, Noah Tovohome and Rajay Zannu, for the murder of one Segun Zusu over bags of rice.
The two defendants were put on trial on Tuesday before Magistrate Linda Balogun on two counts bordering on murder.
The accused were said to have plotted with a boat driver under the pretence of conveying 36 bags of rice from Seme belonging to the deceased to commit the murder act and cart away with the goods.
Tovohome and Zannu on the they planned to deliver the goods to the victim at Novo River, Seme, intercepted the boat at around 2am, used harmful objects to beat up Zusu to death and threw him into the river. The culprits thereafter took away the rice bags to Badagry and sold them for N1.4m and shared the money.
Police prosecutor, Chekwube Okeh who told the court that the defendants committed the offence on November 12, 2023 and hinted that offence contravenes Section 222, punishable under Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015 read the charge in part, “That you, Noah Tovohome, 27, Rajay Zannu, 38 and others at large, on November 12, 2023, around 2 am, at Novo River, Seme, Lagos State, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did unlawfully kill one 26-year-old Segun Zusu, by hitting a plank on his head and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 222 and punishable under Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.”
The pleas of the defendants were not taken.
Okeh prayed the court to remand them to a correctional centre pending the outcome of legal advice from the office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.
Magistrate Balogun granted the prayer and ordered that the defendants be remanded to the Kirikiri Correctional Centre pending the outcome of legal advice from the DPP.
She adjourned the case till January 22, 2024, for the DPP’s advice.
