Happiness Elebiju, a boat operator, was sentenced to life in prison for the deaths of 13 passengers in a boat accident.
Elebiju was charged with 11 counts of manslaughter and operating a boat without a license before Justice Josephine Oyefeso of the Lagos State High Court in Lekki.
Mrs Olayinka Adeyemi, the Lagos State Director of Public Prosecutions, told the court that the convict committed the crime on July 29, 2020, after loading his passengers from Kirikiri to Badagry.
Elebiju, according to Adeyemi, drove his boat with the inscription ‘Mount Zion Transport’ in a reckless and dangerous manner, killing some of the passengers.
After the convict pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, the prosecution called five witnesses in the case.
In his decision, the judge stated that the prosecution proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
In addition to the life sentence, Elebiju was sentenced to six months in prison for operating a boat without a license by Justice Josephine Oyefeso.