21 years old Nurse Killed and set on fire in Oyo

WHAT offence could any lady have committed to have warranted her being tied by the hands, strangled, and the room in which she was, set on fire? This remains a puzzle to many residents of the ancient Oyo town.

The deceased, Tolu Esuola (21), was the only occupant of the building at Akeetan Baale compound, Oyo that night because her mother and  siblings had traveled to a village and their father was away in Ogbomoso, where he works.

He killer had on Tuesday, July 24th, 2012, thought his heinous intention would be covered by setting the house on fire so that the murder would be seen to be a fire accident. Unfortunately for the killer, the cable wire with which she was tied gave the crime away as the naked wire remained on the hands, while the insulating rubber melted away.

Though the remains of Tolu (daughter of Mr Femi and Mrs Juliana Esuola-nee Gbadegesin) had been buried, the only suspect, now in police net, was the deceased’s former lover and a convert of the deceased’s father.

The suspect, Aafa Yakubu, now popularly called Kunle, after being converted, was said to be living as an adopted son of Mr Esuola , and  even started dating Tolu at some point. Sources close to the family said both agreed to be future partners after having an abortion procured.

The secret deal reportedly turned awry when Tolu allegedly discovered that Kunle was also having an affair with a daughter of the poultry farmer he was working for.

According to one of the deceased’s uncles, Mr Oluranti Esuola, the deceased confided in an aunt that she got pregnant for Kunle and that it was aborted without the knowledge of her parents.

He narrated the incident that led to the frosty relationship thus: “Around May this year, Kunle came to our house and said he wanted to see our father. We told him Baba was not at home. He met five of us as family members, and so reported what he said Tolu did to him. He said Tolu went to his boss and reported that he was dating  a daughter of his, and  that he had once impregnated her {Tolu.}

“He said his boss had been arranging to loan him certain amount of money but decided against it as a result of Tolu’s report.

“Angrily, he told us that Tolu’s action amounted to taking away from him his source of livelihood and that anybody who did that, indirectly intended to kill him, But that before he would allow himself to be killed, anything could happen” He concluded.

“My wife appealed to him that it should not degenerate to that level, but he bolted out in anger”, Oluranti said.

A bus conductor, whose vehicle allegedly conveyed the suspect from Ogbomoso Road to Owode in Oyo town also insisted that contrary to his claim, Kunle was indeed in Oyo town Tuesday evening before Tolu’s death.

The conductor said he and his oga even chatted with Kunle, whom he identified as Aafa Yakubu, till they got to Owode, where he was dropped. Because they could not take him home, as the driver got passengers going to Ibadan, the conductor said  Aafa Yakubu was given N30 to take okada home, and he collected it. “He even said the N10 note in the money got torn a bit, but we assured him that okada riders would accept it. That was how he left,” he added.

An elderly man, Wahab Ajani, whose house is close to the burnt building stated also that when the fire was noticed around 1p.m, nobody believed anybody could be in the house as there was no scream from within. “We poured all the available water around our area on the fire but could not get it extinguished. It was after the fire fighters had battled it that the body of the deceased was found on the bed. “What could have led to that, however, we do not know”, he said.

Another revelation from one of the deceased’s uncles had it that, “In the evening of that day, Tolu was in our house and she received a call from Kunle. In the conversation, he asked for Tolu’s mother and she said her mother had gone to Orowole Village with the other siblings. He also asked of her father and she said he was in Ogbomoso. He then asked whether she would be the only one to sleep in the house that night, to which she answered in the affirmative, saying that nothing would happen to her.

When my wife confirmed that it was Kunle that called, she rebuked Tolu for having contact still with Kunle, despite his beating her recently, and the fact that she procured an abortion for him against their christian faith.”

In spite of the suspicion surrounding Kunle s behavior, however, he insisted before the police at Ojongbodu, Oyo that he did not know anything about Tolu’s death. He maintained that he was in Minna on the fateful day distributing eggs taken there on behalf of his boss, Pastor Ayegoro.

Kunle has been transferred to Iyaganku police division in Ibadan where he is currently being further interrogated.

In her lamentation, Mrs Juliana Esuola said “From all indications, and the circumstances of his actions and movements, I believe Kunle knew about my daughter’s death”, the mother concluded.

The father, Femi Esuola, also resigned to faith, praying that God should arrest the ugly trend and judge accordingly. He said he took Kunle as an adopted child in Christ and did everything possible to make life worthwhile even to the extent of obtaining loan to purchase a motorcycle for him. He said he was stunned about the news of the immoral relationship he later heard existed between his daughter and Kunle.

The Oyo state Police Public Relations Officer, Mrs Clet-Ilobanafor Olabisi confirmed the incident, saying that investigations had already commenced, as Kunle remained in the police custody.