Timothy Adegoke’s Death: More revelations as witness teatifies in court

As the trial into the alleged killing of Timothy Adegoke enters day two, more revelations have begun to emerge on the circumstances surrounding his death.

A police detective, Inspector Afeez Olaniyan who was called as the third witness at the resumed hearing on Tuesday said through investigations carried out, it was determined that the late Timothy Adegoke actually lodged at Hilton Royal hotel, Ile-ife on the 5th of November, 2021.

Olaniyan stated that Timothy Adegoke’s lifeless body was discovered on the 6th of November, 2021 and also disrespected by removing it unlawfully from the hotel and subsequently dumped on a site along Ede road, Ile-ife

He also confirmed that it was in a bid to cover up that some members of staff of the hotel who are defendants in the case doctored the hotel documents which the original documents were recovered from one of the defendants, Adesola Adedeji’s phone galaxy.

The police investigator said, giving the fact that the circumstances surrounding Timothy’s death was ‘highly suspicious’ his corpse was deposited at the Osun State University Teaching Hospital morgue in Osogbo for expert opinion to ascertain the cause of the death.

In his tesmonies, Inspector Olaniyan stated that in the course of investigation “Gbade Adegoke, the elder brother of the deceased showed me from his handset, a receipt of Hilton Hotel where Timothy previously lodged. The receipt was issued to him on 29th August, 2021 and I made a printout. My team went on fact finding to the hotel and requested for all records from August to November 10, 2021. They were made available by one Adebayo Tuned. I scrolled down to 5th of November where I discovered a receipt with number 7316 being missing from the records.

“I interrogated the auditor who brought it, one Adekunle Adebayo one of the defendants. He told me he just received the record and has not been audited by him. In view if that he said he could not be responsible for the missing receipt. At that point I requested for the photocopy of all the records and were presented to me.

“On the following day Gbade Adegoke and Director from the company where the victim (Timothy) worked revealed to me that they had accessed his account transaction history for the 5th of November, 2021 which showed that he made N37,000 transfer to a UBA account belonging to one Adesola Adedeji who was later discovered to be a staff of the hotel. I called the chairman (Dr. Rahmon Adedoyin) of the hotel on phone requesting to see Adesola Adedeji which he granted.

“She was presented to me as promised and she confirmed that she received the alert of N37, 000 from a lodger in lue of payment for two days hotel accommodation. In my office I showed her the record given to me as prepared in November 5th, 2021. She confirmed she was the receptionist on that day. She went through the record and denied the handwriting and that the record was not made by her.

“When I asked her what happened on the day she said she was actually on duty and lodged 16 guests on the day. She also said they have a checked that checks their records on a daily basis. His name is Oluwole Lawrence who confirmed that she lodged 16 guests and signed for her. Adesola told me that the record I presented to her only showed 15 lodgers saying the record was not checked and the signature was not hers.

“She requested for her phone and u obliged then she showed me a snapped copy of the record which she prepared on 5th November, 2021. The victim was the first to be lodged according to the picture she snapped and the missing receipt with number 7316 was the one issued to the missing victim judging from the copy shown to me from the phone gallery.”

The police investigator stated that Adesola said she handed over both the money and guest to Chiofuna Magdalena who relieved her and Adeniyi Aderogba, the manager on duty the 6th of November, 2021.

He told the court that all those involved were invited to give account of the whereabouts of the victim and who doctored the record prepared by Adesola but they all denied the knowledge.

He said “As a detective officer, I put them in separate offices to write their statements. I collected the denied record which was doctored and compared the characters used in the record and discovered that it tallied with that of Adeniyi Aderogba. I confronted him with the fact that you Aderogba doctored the record and he could not deny. I told him to tell the truth which he did.

“Aderogba said Magdalena called him that a guest at the hotel room number 305 which they took over from Adesola was not seen and all the calls put across to the number were not responded to.

“He (Aderogba) told him that Magdalena told him that she sought the spare key to the room and when they entered they open the room where the lifeless body of the guest was lying on the bed. He said they called the chairman, Dr. Rahmon Adedoyin and informed him of the incident. He said few minutes later, Raheem Adedoyin, the son of the chairman alongside a receptionist, one Easter and Kazeem Otetunde came to joined them. He said Raheem took them all to an office where according to them, they took an oath with the Bible not to dislose what happened.

“Around 11pm himself (Aderogba), Raheem, and Kazeem evacuated the body of the deceased fein the room and took it to Ede road alongside his property which include laptop, phone and money and dumped them by the roadside”.

All exhibits presented by the witness were admitted in evidence by the presiding judge, Justice Adepele Ojo as the counsels to all defendants reserved cross examinations of some of them till final address stage while some they did not object to some the exhibits.

The case was adjourned to 16th, 17th and 18th of March 2022 by the presiding judge.