Published 18th Dec, 2022

By Tola Owoyele

Adesola Adedeji, one of the receptionists who was on duty on the night Timothy Adegoke, a master’s student at the Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife, Osun State, was allegedly killed inside Hilton Hotels and Resorts, has narrated how the hotel management attempted to cover up the student’s death.

According to Premium Times, Adesola said the student’s name was removed from the hotel’s guest record in order to cover the fact that he was lodged there.

While testifying at the High Court in Osogbo, Osun State, the receptionist said Adegoke was lodged in Room 305 after she had received accommodation payment from him.

Adedeji also said that after Adegoke died, she was called to a meeting by Roheem Adedoyin, the managing director of the hotel, and was instructed to fabricate another receipt which would not reflect the name of the late student.

The receptionist added that Roheem, who is the son of Rahmon Adedoyin, the owner of the hotel, instructed her to replace the late student’s name with “Adewale Lekan and receipt number 7316”.

“I was at Ilesha when I received a call from Esther, one of the workers of the hotel, that there was an urgent meeting at the chairman’s house. I told her that I was not around to attend the meeting. Few minutes later, another person called me again, saying that I had to attend the meeting,” Adedeji said.

“When I enquired why I must attend the meeting, he said it was because a receipt was missing, then I said I didn’t know how it got missing. I later told Esther to send me the address of the chairman’s house and I went there.

“When I got there, Prince Roheem came to me and requested that I follow him to a place within the compound. After we got there, he told me that a receipt was missing, then I told him I didn’t know anything about the receipt because I balanced my account to the auditor before I left the hotel.

“Prince Roheem then told me that he was my boss and he would not lie to me, and that he would protect me. He gave me a blank receipt of the hotel and he wrote a name on a separate paper. He said I should write the name on the receipt and sign on the receipt.

“The name he wrote on the paper was ‘Adewale Lekan’ and nobody bears that name on the list of people lodged in the hotel on that day.

“I obliged because I felt they were trying to cover up a fraud, and since he is my boss and it was the hotel receipt and he said he was protecting me. After signing the receipt, he collected it back from me.

“We fabricated the receipt in Dr. Rahmon Adedoyin’s compound, although he was not within the place we had the discussion.”

After Adedeji’s account, Justice Adepele Ojo, the presiding judge, adjourned the case till February 2023.

Adegoke, an Abuja-based chartered accountant, had travelled to Ile-Ife on November 5, 2021, to write his MBA exams at the OAU Distance Learning Centre.

He was declared missing on November 7, 2021. Later, his body was found in a shallow grave at a location very close to Hilton Hotel and Resorts, where he had been accommodated.

Standing trial in the case are Rahmon Adedoyin, the owner of the hotel, and six of his staff. Roheem Adedoyin is still at large.

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