The Court of Appeal sitting in Akure, Ondo State capital has upheld the death sentence of Ramon Adedoyin, a prominent businessman and hotelier, for his involvement in the murder of one Timothy Adegoke, a former postgraduate student of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State.

Delivering the judgment on Thursday, the court affirmed the earlier verdict of the Osun State High Court, which had sentenced Adedoyin to death.

“The judgment of the High Court of Osun State stands. Adedoyin’s appeal is dismissed in part,” the court declared in part.

The Court of Appeal, however, set aside some aspects of the lower court’s orders, including the forfeiture of the Hilton Hotel and the order for Adedoyin to pay for the education of Adegoke’s children.

Furthermore, the court ruled that it had no jurisdiction to impose penalties outside the statutory provisions

Adegoke’s death was reported in November 2021 after his corpse was found at the Hilton Honours Hotel in Ile-Ife, Osun State, where he had lodged.

The hotelier had travelled from Abuja for an examination at a distance learning centre in Moro, Osun State on November 5 of that year.

He had checked into the hotel but was reported missing after two days. However, Adegoke’s body was found days later, leading to a probe that linked his death to Adedoyin and others.

In May 2023, Adedoyin and others were sentenced to death after they were found guilty of murder and conspiracy to murder.

But dissatisfied with the judgement, Adedoyin approached the appeal court to dismiss the sentence and conviction.

The court of appeal, on Thursday, however, upheld the conviction and death sentence of the hotelier.