Dr Ramon Adedoyin, the owner of Hilton Hotel in Ile Ife, has been sentenced to death by hanging.
The death sentence was issued by Osun State Chief Judge, Justice Adepele Oyebola Ojo.
Adedoyin was found guilty of the murder of Timothy Adegoke – a Master’s student of Obafemi Awolowo University.
Justice Ojo, in her ruling on Tuesday, said circumstantial evidence proved that Adedoyin was responsible for the murder of Adegoke.
She added that Adedoyin’s decision not to enter the witness box did not help him, as the circumstantial evidence had shifted the burden of proof on him.
The judge dismissed the alibi who said the hotel owner was in Abuja for many days around the time the death of the late Adegoke occurred.
However, four members of the staff prosecuted alongside Adedoyin were discharged and acquitted of charges against them.
Adegoke, a postgraduate student of Obafemi Awolowo University, went missing after lodging at Hilton Hotel in November 2021.
After his family raised the alarm, the police began an investigation, which led to the arrest of the owner of the hotel, Ramon Adedoyin and six employees.