Abdulrahman Bello, the 29-year-old cleric and prime suspect in the murder of a final-year student of Kwara State College of Education, Hafsoh Lawal, has confessed to killing the young woman for money rituals.
Bello, who is standing trial alongside other accomplices at the Kwara State High Court, admitted to the crime in a video recording presented as evidence by the prosecuting counsel.
He, however, claimed to have acted alone, adding that he would not have killed Hafsoh if he had access to human body parts through other means.
The video evidence was part of the ongoing trial presided over by Justice Hannah Ajayi at the High Court in Ilorin.
During Wednesday’s proceedings, Inspector Ayodele Azeez of the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) gave a detailed account of the police investigation and listed exhibits recovered from the suspect’s residence.
“On February 14, 2025, a case of murder and rape was transferred from Oja-Oba Division to the State CID. During the search of the suspect’s residence at Olunlade, we recovered an axe, a cutlass, charms, a table, the victim’s severed hands, blood-filled containers, multiple phones, a consultation book, slippers, and a pair of earrings belonging to the deceased,” Azeez said.
The officer also explained how Bello’s statement was obtained, stressing that the process was carried out in the presence of his lawyer, Barrister A.O. Ahmed.
“After cautioning him, he wrote his statement in his own handwriting, signed it, and the lawyer countersigned it. I also recorded a video of the entire process on my phone, transferred it to my laptop, and backed it up on a compact disc with a certificate of compliance,” he added.
Azeez further testified that the police tracked and arrested Bello’s known associates using call records that revealed frequent communication between him and the co-defendants.
“Our analysis of his call logs showed regular contact with the co-defendants. When we brought them in, it became clear they knew each other. One of them—the second defendant—was Bello’s teacher. The third defendant is a student of the second, while the third and fifth defendants are Bello’s close friends,” Azeez told the court.
After reviewing the evidence tendered before the court, Justice Ajayi adjourned proceedings for a recess, with the trial expected to continue later in the day.
