Timothy Adegoke: "Adedoyin Is Not Known As A Ritualist" - Community Group, Vows Justice For Deceased Student

A group under the aegis of Ife Legacy Foundation has insisted that the City of Ife remains a safe place for all people to live and do business.

This reaction came in the midst of the news of an alleged murder of one Mr Timothy Adegoke Oludare, a master's student of Obafemi Awolowo University, a government owned University in the ancient city.

The group in a communique on Tuesday with the title "A COMMUNIQUE ON BEHALF OF IFE COMMUNITY ON THE TRAGIC DEATH OF MR TIMOTHY ADEGOKE OLUDARE", signed by its Publicity Secretary, Niyi Murele commiserated with the family and friends of Late Adegoke, adding that it would contribute everything possible within its capacity to support investigation efforts of the law enforcement agents to unravel the cause of Oludare's death and due prosecution of anybody found culpable.

The group however appealed to the public to treat the matter as an isolated case without attempting to add any general colorization to the situation in relation to the enduring peaceful nature and image of the Ife community.

"On behalf of the entire Ife community, we like to express our deepest and sincere sympathy with the entire Oludare’s family, most especially the aged parents and the young family that he left behind. No amount of words can describe the level of pains and  agonies this devastating incidence must have caused in their souls. No parent or family will ever pray to experience such an incident. 

"We can only at this time pray for God’s comfort for the immediate and extended family, not excluding friends and loved ones going through the pain of this sad incident. As a community we identify with them at this difficult period, and we are fully in support that justice be done to whoever is found culpable of cutting short the life of this budding star Mr Timothy Adegoke Oludare. We are monitoring events and we strongly believe that justice will prevail at last.

"We kindly request that this horrible event be seen as an isolated case and we will do our best not only to ensure justice for Timothy Adegoke Oludare and his family, but most importantly that such ugly incidence does not repeat itself in our community. Already, measures are being put in place by hoteliers in Ife to guarantee safety and pleasure promised by service providers. People should be rest assured that Ile-Ife is a safe place to use hotel facilities.

"To the general populace, we will like to emphasize that this incidence does not represent the good gesture , safety and peaceful state of Ife generally and the hospitality sector in particular. It’s no news that since the ascension of His Imperial Majesty – Ooni Adeyeye Ogunwusi Enitan – Ojaja ll, a renown ambassador of peace himself, the tourism and hospitality sector in Ife township has taken a new turn with new hotels springing forth, providing hospitality services that is obtainable in major cities of the world.", the statement reads in part.

The statement further added that the embattled Owner of Hilton Hotels Honours where the crime was alleged to have been committed, Dr. Ramon Adegoke Atobatele Adedoyin, the Maye of Ife has no record of murder or ritual killing as alleged by those seeking justice for the deceased.

"Dr Ramon Adedoyin is a prominent son of Ife and known to be a successful entrepreneur, not known as a ritualist, and we can only rely on police investigation to reveal the truth on this occasion. Within Ife community, he has never been associated with such evil as this, and that is why we appeal to the law enforcement agent to leave no stone unturned to get to the bottom of the matter.", the group said.

The group in the statement further appreciated the law enforcement engents for their efforts so far in the case, particularly their quick response leading to the arrest of suspects and subsequent findings.

"We seize this opportunity to appreciate the efforts of the law enforcement agents so far in this case. Their quick response and apprehension of suspects is commendable. It’s no news that the owner of the hotel Dr Ramon Adedoyin have been arrested alongside six others and currently being interrogated. We believe that within the ambience of law, if any of them is indicted from the interrogation, they will be duly charged and prosecuted. 

"As a community, we believe no one is above the law, and all parties involved in this ugly incidence deserves justice in accordance to their roles. We appreciate the effective communication from the office of the Commissioner of Police so far. We further request that they keep the general populace informed about their findings to avoid misinformation due to presumptions and assumptions in this age of fake news on social media.", it added.

The group however cautioned media organizations and social media users on the dangers associated with spreading fake and unverified news and information on the very sensitive case as this, according to them will not help the process of investigation.

"We also like to appeal to media organisations, bloggers and social media users to please abstain from sharing and spreading unverified information. The commissioner of police have already appealed to the general populace for patience while they progress with their sensitive investigation. The only way to get justice for Timothy and his family is on the altar of truth, not speculations, fake news and misinformation. We all know that there are many questions begging for answers as pertaining to the gruesome death of Timothy, which cannot be obtained by insinuations, presumptions and assumptions. 

"At the moment, there are many conflicting information on social media which is not helpful to anyone, most especially Timothy’s family. It’s unhelpful for them to be reading different stories about circumstances surrounding the death of their loved one on daily basis. Our best bet is to support the law enforcement agent and allow them to do their investigation and come out with their official findings, and prosecution of culpable individuals involved in Timothy’s death. 

"Until such a time that justice is meted out on  both sides of the aisles in this case, our prayers and thoughts as a community are with Timothy’s family. May his soul rest in perfect peace. Amen.", the statement added.

Late Timothy Adegoke was said to have traveled to Ife on Friday November 5th, 2021 to sit for an MBA examinations of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. He was reportedly declared missing by family on Saturday November 6, 2021 after several calls put through to his phone line by his wife were not responded and the University had no record of him attending the said examination.

Police investigation later revealed that the deceased had logged in a hotel in the City and also made some payment to the personal account of the receptionist of the hotel in question, Hilton Hotels Honours.

Six suspects were subsequently arrested alongside the owner of the hotel and upon interrogation, the hotel staff, who earlier denied same, confessed to the Police that the guest actually logged in 305 of the hotel but claimed that he was found dead in the room two days later while they took his body to a neighboring area and gave him a shallow burial to avoid being arrested.

“Investigation by the police indicate that Adegoke slept inside Hilton Hotel and Resort, Ile-Ife, and he was traced to the hotel. In the course of the investigation, we arrested six workers connected to the issue.

“Further investigation led to the arrest of the owner of the Hotel, Dr Rahman Adedoyin. He is still in our custody. The corpse has been exhumed and deposited at the OAUTH morgue.

“The relations were present when the corpse was exhumed, the Pathologist and the Commissioner of Police were also there. No part of the body was missing when it was exhumed. I plead with Nigerians not to stir up controversy, but should allow police conduct diligent investigation to unravel the mystery behind the death of late Adegoke”, Osun State Police Public Relations Officer, Yemisi Opalola had said while featuring on Fresh FM Yoruba programme in Osogbo, the State Capital.