Lagos court sentences killer cop Vandi to death for murdering pregnant lawyer
A Lagos State High Court has ordered a suspended police officer, Drambi Vandi, to be hanged for killing a pregnant lawyer, Omobolanle Raheem, on Christmas day last year.
Justice Ibironke Harrison said the prosecution had proven beyond reasonable doubt that Vandi was guilty of murder.
She said, “The court finds the defendant guilty on one count of murder. You will be hanged by the neck till you are dead.”
Vandi, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), shot Mrs. Raheem at a checkpoint in Ajah underbridge while she was returning from church with her husband.
Mrs. Raheem was a property lawyer based in Lagos. She was expecting her second child when she was killed.
Vandi was arraigned by the Lagos State Government on January 16, 2023, and faced a one-count charge of murder contrary to Section 223 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015. He filed a no case submission, but it was dismissed by the court on April 3, 2023. The court then asked him to open his defence.
The court heard testimonies from 11 witnesses for the prosecution, including Mrs. Raheem’s husband, who identified Vandi as the shooter. The court also relied on forensic evidence and CCTV footage to convict Vandi.
