Graphic Photo: 40yr Old Man Beaten To Death By Cousins For Disrespecting Family Head

The cord of kinship recently snapped within the Obasanya family in Ogun State when a 40-year-old member, Dele Obasanya, was allegedly beaten to death by his cousins, Deji and Sunday Obasanya at Iwokun-Nla village, via Obada Oko.

The beating was said to have been prompted by Deji’s father, Pa Alagbe Obasanya, who allegedly asked his son and nephew to deal with the deceased, because he disrespected him.

The incident reportedly occurred on Sunday, April 28 at about 4p.m. Deji and Sunday, who are currently at large, reportedly came to the village in a tricycle with three unknown men. The five men were said to have gone to Dele’s house where they learnt that he was sleeping.

They reportedly asked his aged mother to call her son out and immediately they set eyes on him, they were said to have descended on him, beating him until he became unconscious. Having satisfied themselves, Deji, Sunday, and their friends ran away, leaving Dele in a pool of blood.

Crime Reports gathered that on return from his farm, Pa Obasanya met Dele unconscious. Residents of the village were said to have appealed to him to take the seriously-injured man to the hospital, but allegedly shunned them, saying that Dele, his attackers and himself belonged to the same Obasanya family, and so should be left alone.

He was alleged to have also threatened to write a petition against any of them if they should attempt to take Dele to the hospital, as he would hold them responsible for anything that happened to Dele in the hospital. Because of his statement, the villagers reportedly left him alone, but unfortunately, Dele died same day at about 8p.m.

The villagers were said to have reported at Ewekoro police station the following day when they saw the old man attempting to bury the deceased.

Before the event that led to Dele’s death, Crime Reports gathered that Pa Obasanya had reported the deceased to his son, Deji and his nephew, Sunday, that Dele beat him. The attack on Dele, it was said, was not unconnected with Pa Obasanya’s report to his son.

However, Pa Obasanya, whose age could not be ascertained, denied sending his son and nephew to beat Dele though he admitted that he told his nephew that Dele once pushed him off a chair and hit him with a stick. He claimed that people were just saying things to rope him in. Pa Obasanya, who also said that he was a farmer, told Crime Reports:
 “I am from Abeokuta but I live in my village at Iwokun-Nla via Obada Oko.

“Dele was the son of my elder brother while Sunday was born by my younger brother. Both brothers are dead so I am the head of the family. On the fateful day, I was in my farm when someone came to call me that Sunday and Dele were fighting. I was not there to know if my son Deji was there, but people are claiming that he was also among those who attacked Dele. By the time I came, Sunday had run away.

“”When I saw Dele’s condition, I really pitied him. He was just crying and saying that he was beaten by Sunday. I also saw he was beaten because he was soaked with blood. I also saw a deep gash on his neck. Someone helped in bathing his wounds and he was taken inside the house. At about 8p.m., he breathed his last.”

Crime Reports sought to confirm whether it was true that Pa Obasanya said the deceased should be taken inside the house instead of being taken to the hospital for treatment, when he saw the severity of his injury. He answered that the fear that overcame him made him lose all sense of reasoning.

Pa Obasanya insisted that he would not have allowed the fight if he had been around.

He denied asking his child and nephew, Deji and Sunday to beat Dele because he was once rude to him. Narrating what once transpired between him and Dele, Pa Obasanya said:
“Those saying that are just lying against me. When something happens, people will be looking for a scape goat; that was why they started milling that rumour.

“Dele and I lived in the village. Some weeks ago, Sunday came to the village and saw me limping. When he demanded to know the reason, I told him it was Dele who hit me with a stick. Dele’s action then was prompted by the quarrel between my son and his son. I have a young son from my young wife but the boy is older than Dele’s son. Dele said my son beat his son when he went to fetch water.

“He came to report but I replied him that the beating could not have been so much as to warrant his reaction to it. I was sittting down, he just pushed me and I fell. He said he knew I would support my son against his own. Before I knew what was happening, he picked a stick and hit me with it. I was helped up but Sunday noticed it when he came.”

The old man, who was being interrogated at the homicide section of the State Criminal Investigation Department, Eleweran, however said that he had not laid his eyes on his son, Deji, and Sunday since the incident happened.

Confirming the story, the Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Muyiwa Adejobi, said that investigations would reveal the culpability, or otherwise, of Pa Obasanya, stating further that efforts were on to apprehend the suspects at large.