Court Remands Man for Allegedly Killing Osun Bishop

A Magistrate Court in Osogbo has ordered the remand of a 42-year-old man, Wale Ogunsanmi, for allegedly stabbing to death Bishop Shina Olaribigbe, the founder of Rapture Empowerment International Church.
Ogunsanmi was arraigned by the Osun State Police Command’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on a single count of murder. The charge sheet, marked MoS/19c/2025, stated that the incident occurred on January 1, 2025, at about 8:55 p.m. in the Fan Milk area of Ajegunle, Osogbo.
According to the charge, “You, Wale Ogunsanmi, on the 1st of January, 2025, at about 8:55 p.m., at Fan Milk Area of Ajegunle, Osogbo, in the Osogbo Magisterial District, did unlawfully stab one Shina Olaribigbe to death and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 319 of the Criminal Code, Cap 33, Volume 1, Laws of Osun State of Nigeria, 2002.”
Due to the court’s lack of jurisdiction, the defendant’s plea was not taken.
Presiding Magistrate A. O. Odeleye ordered Ogunsanmi to be remanded at the Ilesa Correctional Centre pending further proceedings. The case was adjourned to a later date.
The police alleged that Ogunsanmi attacked Bishop Olaribigbe after finding him in the company of his estranged wife, who serves as an interpreter at the bishop’s church. Reports indicate that Ogunsanmi and his wife had been separated for about a year due to marital disputes.
Yemisi Opalola, spokesperson for the Osun State Police Command, confirmed that the bishop was at the residence of Ogunsanmi’s wife on the night of the incident.
“The bishop was in the woman’s residence when her husband arrived and stabbed him several times. It is believed the suspect acted out of suspicion that the pastor was having an affair with his wife,” Opalola said.
The late bishop had reportedly been involved in mediating disputes between the couple before their separation. On the night of the attack, Ogunsanmi allegedly broke into the house and found the bishop in the bedroom, where the stabbing occurred.
Police officers from the Dugbe Division promptly arrived at the scene, arrested the suspect, and recovered the weapon used in the attack.
The bishop’s body has been deposited at the UNIOSUN Teaching Hospital Mortuary, Osogbo, for an autopsy.
The incident has shocked the local community, with many calling for justice for the slain religious leader.