Sign Ogun couple, son killers’ death warrant, Nigerians urge Abiodun

Lekan Adekanbi, Ahmed Odetola, and Waheed Adeniyi were sentenced to death by hanging on Monday by an Ogun State High Court in Kobape, Abeokuta, for the January 1, 2023, murders of Kehinde Fatinoye, his wife Bukola Fatinoye, and their son Oreoluwa.

Nigerians have demanded that Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun sign the execution sentence right now in order to guarantee prompt justice in the wake of the ruling.

Many claimed that death row convicts spend years inside bars, subsisting on public funds while justice is not served.

Although many people applauded the court's decision, there have been worries raised about the government's unwillingness to approve execution orders, which has resulted in many death row inmates being held in prisons indefinitely. Social media was used by irate residents to call for quick action.

"Please have all state executive governors sign the documents of those on death row instead of keeping them in correctional facilities and wasting taxpayer money to feed them," wrote Otunba Smart Adeleke Al-Makura on Facebook.

"To clear the jails and other places on the list, Governor Dapo Abiodun ought to sign this urgent document. They are undeserving of life.

"Thanks to the judiciary system," wrote another user, Taiwo Samson Enitan. These murderers should have their death warrants approved in order to lessen criminal activity in our society. In addition to lowering the crime rate, this will instill dread in those with similar criminal intentions.

Ya'u Ibrahim contended that the refusal to execute execution orders has contributed to rising crime rates.

Ibrahim stated, “The governors don’t sign the death warrants. If people are hanged or shot dead as judges pass verdicts, the crime of desperation to make money will drastically reduce.”

Similarly, Com. Olusegun Makavelli Shakur talked about urgency, saying, “I wish the governor would quickly sign this to serve as a deterrent to others. We cannot keep pampering deadly cases like this.”

Samson Taiwo echoed the sentiment, stating, “The current governor should please sign their death warrant with immediate effect. They don’t deserve to live.”

Another user, Titilayo O. Jagun, directly addressed the governor, “Gov. Dapo Abiodun, please sign their death warrant anytime it gets to you.”


Olusegun Fatoyinbo, who claimed to have followed the case from the beginning, described the crime as barbaric.

Fatoyinbo wrote, “That’s a very good judgment. I followed the case from the onset. The way these guys killed the couple and their son was very barbaric. I wonder why all the governors in Nigeria refuse to sign the death warrants of condemned criminals.
"The Nigerian constitution should be amended to give the chief judges of each state the authority to issue death sentences."

Soon after returning from a crossover service, the Fatinoye family members were attacked at their home in Ibara GRA.

The attackers, led by Adekanbi, their driver, broke into the house at around two in the morning, killed the couple, and then burned the house and their bodies.

Before tossing them into the Ogun River, the assailants also bound their adoptive son and their own son, Oreoluwa.

The adopted son amazingly lived, but Oreoluwa tragically died.

Adekanbi acknowledged planning the attack in a February 2023 interview with reporters, pointing to his bosses' denial of a pay rise or loan.

He admitted, "I took the action because the couple refused to raise my pay and they didn't comply when I asked them for a loan to purchase a motorbike."