On Friday, a 100-year-old man, Oladepo Ogunlade and Musiliyu Ogundiran, 61, were arraigned before the Iyaganku Magistrates’ Court, Ibadan, for land grab and destruction of economic trees.
The police charged Messrs Ogunlade and Ogundiran with conspiracy, land grab, malicious damage, threatening violence, and conduct likely to cause a breach of peace.
Prosecution counsel Philip Amusan told the court that the two men committed the offence in 2021 at Lawani village in Ibadan.
Mr Amusan alleged that the defendants and others at large forcibly took 25 acres of land worth N50 million, belonging to Wasiu Lawani. He alleged that they also destroyed some economic trees on the land, such as cocoa, palm and coconut trees worth N800,000 while threatening violence.
Mr Amusan said the defendants conducted themselves in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace by destroying the economic trees with a bulldozer and without justification.
The offence, the police said, contravened sections 516, 451 and 249(d) of the Criminal laws of Oyo State, 2000.
He added that it contravened sections 6, 4 and 7(1) of the Oyo State Real Properties Protection Law, 2016.
The defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The Magistrate, Mrs O. A. Akande, admitted the defendants to bail in N5 million each and two sureties each in like sum.
She adjourned the case until June 14 for a hearing.
(NAN)
