An Ekiti State High Court, Ado Ekiti Division, has sentenced Olatide Emmanuel, a 48-year-old individual who falsely presented himself as a medical doctor, to death by hanging. The severe judgment was delivered following his conviction for the murder of a woman named Bosede Falade.

Emmanuel was formally arraigned in 2025 on a two-count charge encompassing murder and impersonation. According to the charges, the defendant, on June 24, 2019, at Odo Ikole compound, Erinmope Ekiti, committed the murder of Bosede Falade. Furthermore, on June 9, 2019, at Ajebamidele Street, Otun Ekiti, he was found to have falsely represented himself as a medical doctor. These actions were deemed contrary to Section 316 and punishable under Section 319(1) of the Criminal Code Law, Cap. C16, Laws of Ekiti State, 2012.

During the trial, Prosecutor Kunle-Shina Adeyemo presented the case against Emmanuel. A key eyewitness, Reverend Omotade, testified that he was contacted by the deceased’s husband, who reported his wife’s death during childbirth. Upon arriving at the hospital, Omotade observed the corpse on a stretcher and the self-acclaimed doctor standing nearby. Critical examination of the body led Omotade to conclude that the operation had been performed unprofessionally, prompting him to contact the police at Otun Ekiti to initiate a full investigation.

In his defense, Olatide Emmanuel informed the court that he had established a clinic in Erinmope Ekiti in 2019 after completing a nursing apprenticeship in Lagos State. He claimed that the deceased, Bosede Falade, was not initially his patient but had approached him when she was due for childbirth. Emmanuel stated that after an examination, he advised both Falade and her husband that a Caesarean section was necessary, and they allegedly consented to the procedure. He maintained that the operation itself was successful, with both the mother and child alive initially, but the mother subsequently developed complications and later died.

The prosecution called seven witnesses and tendered crucial evidence, including statements, medical reports, and photographs of the deceased, as exhibits. The defendant, represented by his counsel Adeyinka Opaleke, chose not to present any witnesses.

In his judgment, Justice Jubril Aladejana emphasized the defendant’s inherently callous nature, stating, “The confession of the defendant under cross-examination that he did not qualify as medical personnel, yet proceeded to open up a human being, knowing he had no training or certification to do so, portrayed the defendant as inherently callous.” Justice Aladejana further declared, “I find the defendant wickedly reckless in his actions on the now deceased Bosede Falade. The prosecution has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the reckless action of the defendant caused the woman’s death on 24th June, 2019. The defendant is accordingly found guilty as charged.”

The court’s final judgment on Olatide Emmanuel was: “The judgment of this court is that you, Olatide Emmanuel, be hanged by the neck until you are dead. May the Lord have mercy on your soul.”