Man Sentenced To Two Years In Prison for Stealing Catfish

A Magistrate Court in Ila Orangun, Osun State, has sentenced a 29-year-old man, Olaniyan Taofik, to two years in prison without an option of fine for stealing catfish, cocoa, and other farm produce.

Taofik’s arrest followed a report to the Osun State Amotekun Corps about a theft on a private farm. Prosecuted by the Director of Legal Services for the Amotekun Corps, Mr. Oyedele Akintayo, on behalf of the state’s Attorney General, the convict was accused of unlawfully entering the farm of Mr. Omidoyin Clement of Isale-Osun, Ila-Orangun, on July 16, 2025.

Items stolen included farm tools, bananas, cocoa, walnuts, and live catfish valued at ₦400,000. He also destroyed a CCTV surveillance camera on the property, causing an additional ₦300,000 in damages.

The Amotekun Corps apprehended Taofik while he was attempting to sell the stolen items. During interrogation, he confessed to the crime and admitted to committing similar offences in the past.

Magistrate A.A. Ayeni found him guilty under Sections 81, 390(9), and 451 of the Criminal Code, Cap 34, Vol. II, Laws of Osun State, 2002, stressing that the sentence would serve as a deterrent to habitual offenders and safeguard the livelihoods of rural farmers.