Ayomide Adeleye, a 23-year-old philosophy student at Olabisi Onabanjo University, has made a chilling confession to killing 18-year-old church member Christiana Idowu, an Industrial Training student at Yaba College of Technology.
Adeleye, now in police custody, revealed that financial difficulties drove him to commit the heinous crime “I killed her because I had financial problems,” he stated. He lured Idowu to his residence under the guise of repairing her phone, where he brutally murdered her. “She came to our house around 5pm on the day of the incident and asked me to repair her phone,” Adeleye recounted.
According to Adeleye's statement, he grabbed Idowu, applied pressure, and squeezed her throat until she succumbed. “I just grabbed her, applied pressure. She started struggling. She didn’t really shout because I already suppressed her. I then squeezed her throat, and she gave up.” He then buried her body in a shallow grave behind his compound. “By 4 am the following day, I woke up, I continued digging. Honestly, I did not close my eyes till daybreak,” he said.
In a twisted turn of events, Adeleye contacted Idowu's mother, demanding a ransom. He extorted N360,000 from the grieving mother through manipulation and threats. “The first thing I said to her was, ‘Hello, madam. we have your daughter,'” he said.
Narrating the circumstances after demanding three million from the mother, Adeleye said, “I know for a fact that she didn’t have three million. Even if she did not have that amount, I was ready to collect any amount because I desperately needed money no matter the amount. “After going back and forth with her, she said she was able to get N350, 000.00 and I gave her a sporty bet account to pay the money in order to avoid being traced.”
Adeleye's arrest was facilitated by his own carelessness, as he uploaded his National Identification Number to his SportyBet account, allowing authorities to track his location. “If I had not uploaded my NIN, it would just be an empty account,” he explained, revealing how his attempt to cover his tracks ultimately led to his arrest. “But the moment I uploaded my NIN, all my personal details, my location, my address, my name, everything, was already on the sporty bet. The girl’s phone was also with me, they could have traced the location of the phone, that was how they got my location,” he added.
Expressing remorse for his actions, Adeleye acknowledged that he deserves death for his crime. “I regret that I killed her because my mum and her mum were friends. He continued "I regret that I killed her... I don't deserve any mercy for what I have done.
I ask God to forgive me. What I did was totally wrong and I regret it. “I feel remorseful for what I have done. If there’s any way I could be given a second chance, I want to be given one but I deserve death, honestly. I have been planning to kill myself. While I was in the guard room, I tried to look for any sharp object to cut myself so that I would bleed to death. " he said.
The Lagos State Police Command has confirmed Adeleye's arrest and is proceeding with investigations.
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