Exclusive: How Hafsoh’s killer, Abdulrahman Bello, is quietly seeking to overturn death sentence at Appeal Court
Six months after a Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin sentenced Abdulrahman Bello to death by hanging for the brutal murder of 24-year-old Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal, The Informant247 has exclusively learnt that the convicted killer has quietly approached the Court of Appeal, seeking to overturn the judgment.
Bello, who was convicted in August 2025 by Justice Hannah Olushola Ajayi of the Kwara State High Court, filed a notice of appeal on November 14, 2025, challenging the death sentence handed to him for killing and dismembering the final-year student of the Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin.
Court details sighted by The Informant247 show that the appeal, marked CA/IL/118c/2025: Abdulrahman Bello v. The People of Kwara State, is currently pending before the Court of Appeal, Ilorin Judicial Division.
The appeal was filed without public notice, even as questions continue to mount among residents over his status.
Informed sources confirmed that while the appeal has been duly entered, a date is yet to be fixed for hearing by the presiding Justice of the appellate court.
The source added that the matter is expected to be heard physically in open court rather than virtually, with February 2026 being tentatively projected, subject to the court’s schedule.
Speaking to The Informant247, Barrister Taofeeq Olateju, a Senior Associate at the law firm of Yusuf O. Ali & Co., Ghalib Chambers, hailed the High Court judgment sentencing Bello to death, describing it as incontrovertible, robust, and scholarly.
According to him, the ruling was firmly grounded in law and evidence.
“The judgment of the trial court is a welcome decision that upholds the rule of law. It is a solid judgment and a further confirmation that the life of Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal was unlawfully cut short by Muhammad (Abdulrahman) Bello,” he said.
Olateju noted that while the convict has a constitutional right to appeal the judgment, the decision of the trial court is likely to be upheld when subjected to appellate test.
Bello’s appeal marks a new phase in a case that shocked Ilorin and provoked national outrage over ritual killings.
When contacted for comment, the Kwara State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Senior Sulyman, who led the state’s prosecution team, declined to comment on the appeal and referred The Informant247 to the Court of Appeal.
Background
Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal was reported missing on February 13, 2025, after attending a naming ceremony and subsequently visiting Bello at his residence near the Offa Garage/Olunlade area of Ilorin. Investigations later revealed that Bello had lured the victim after making contact with her on Facebook.
During trial, the prosecution established that Bello killed Hafsoh and dismembered her body for ritual purposes, an act the court ruled was premeditated.
Bello initially confessed to choking the victim to death after having sex with her, before cutting her body into parts.
He later changed his account, claiming she died of an asthma attack, an explanation the court dismissed as false and inconsistent.
In her judgment, Justice Ajayi described the murder as “the highest degree of human wickedness and a cruel act,” holding that Bello’s intention to kill was formed long before Hafsoh visited his apartment.
The court also relied on video and written evidence obtained by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force, ruling that the materials were lawfully obtained and admissible. Bello’s allegation of police brutality was rejected for lack of proof.
Justice Ajayi further noted that a book containing secrets of money-making charms was recovered from Bello’s apartment, reinforcing the prosecution’s case that the killing was ritual-driven.
The judge observed that Bello’s conduct after the crime suggested that “it may not have been his first time engaging in such an act”.
Bello was convicted for murder, dismemberment, and unlawful possession of human parts and blood. While he was discharged on the rape charge, the court sentenced him to death by hanging for murder and imposed an additional 10-year jail term for possession of human parts, with an option of a N100,000 fine or six months’ imprisonment.
Four other defendants charged alongside Bello, Ahmed Abdulwasiu, Suleiman Muyideen, Jamiu Uthman, and Abdulrahmon Jamiu, were discharged and acquitted after the court found no evidence linking them to the crime.
In a strongly worded admonition, Justice Ajayi warned young adults about the dangers of unchecked social media relationships, noting that Hafsoh might have been alive if she had informed family or friends of her visit to a Facebook acquaintance.
What next?
Despite confessing during his High Court trial that he killed Hafsoh Lawal for money rituals and admitting that he acted alone, Abdulrahman is now asking the appellate court to set aside or overturn the judgment that condemned him to death.
For now, Bello remains pending on death row, while the Court of Appeal prepares to determine the next chapter in a case that continues to haunt Ilorin and a family still waiting for justice to run its full course.
“The judgment of the trial court will not be expected until the decision of the Court of Appeal, because if executed, it would render the decision of the Court of Appeal nugatory,” said Barr. Olateju.
