An Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan on Monday granted bail to Olori Naomi Silekunola, the estranged wife of the Ooni of Ile-Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi; the principal of Islamic High School, Bashorun, Ibadan, Mr. Abdullahi Fasasi; and proprietor of Agidigbo FM, Alhaji Oriyomi Hamzat; following their bail applications filed on the Yuletide season event’s stampede that claimed lives.
The Presiding High Court 8 Judge, Justice K. B Olawoyin, gave the ruling following a bail application filed by the accused after listening to the arguments of their counsel.
The trio are facing a four-count of conspiracy, acceleration of death, negligent acts causing harm, and failure to provide adequate security and medical facilities following the tragedy that happened during the Christmas funfair held on Wednesday, December 18, 2024, in Ibadan during which no fewer than 35 children died in the stampede that occurred during the event.
The presiding judge also gave five conditions for each of the accused to secure bail, including N10 million and two sureties who must submit landed documents within the jurisdiction of the court; the applicant must deposit their international passport with the court; and debarment from granting any form of media interview during the pendency of the case.
The Oyo State Government had in the eight-count charge bordering on murder and manslaughter against the applicants over the funfair stampede, accused the defendants “of conspiracy to commit a felony to wit: murder, manslaughter, conspiracy to commit an offence to wit: criminal negligence, and criminal negligence.”
Speaking to journalists after the court’s ruling on the accused application, Oriyomi’s lawyer, Barrister Adekunle Sobaloju, said: “Well, what we did was we filed an application that he should be admitted to bail pending arraignment, and the application was argued today.
“The court listened to all the various arguments and the ruling was reserved till the 13th of January. So principally, we are saying that he ought to be admitted on bail based on certain grounds which I would not want to expatiate on here”, the counsel added.
It would be recalled that the court had, last January 7, fixed today for its ruling on the bail application after their lawyers argued the bail application.
