A Magistrates’ Court sitting in Akure, Ondo State, has sentenced a herder, Dan Bello, to 10 years in prison for unlawfully grazing his cattle and destroying farm produce valued at N50 million, in violation of the state’s anti-open grazing law.
Bello was charged with five counts: conspiracy, unlawful grazing, malicious damage, breach of public peace, and illegal entry. He was found guilty on all counts by Magistrate Damilola Sekoni, who delivered the judgment on Wednesday.
According to the prosecution led by P.O. Nwafor, the incident occurred on October 27, 2023, when Bello illegally grazed his cattle on farmland owned by the National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria, situated along the Ago Panu–Ute road in Owo Local Government Area. The cattle destroyed young palm trees and watermelons, with no permit and in a location not approved for grazing, contravening the Ondo State Livestock Rearing and Grazing Regulation Law of 2021.
Magistrate Sekoni ruled that the prosecution presented credible and sufficient evidence and handed down a four-year sentence on the first charge without the option of a fine, two years on the second charge with an option of a N50,000 fine, and one year each for the third and fourth counts. The fifth charge drew a two-year sentence without the option of a fine. All sentences are to run concurrently.
However, the court offered a conditional reprieve: Bello would be discharged if he pays N2 million in compensation to the affected party.
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